Anybody put fans in their RTT triangular vents? (1 Viewer)

[JCruse]

When I wake up in the morning the inside of the tent is swelteringly hot from the sun beating down on the canvas - which seems to let a lot of infrared get through. I'm thinking of permanently mounting one or two USB/computer fans in those peak vents to run through the night to vent heat in the AM. I'm wondering who else has done this, what kind of fan you used, and how you mounted them. Thanks.

 

[spressomon]

Years ago when I had the Maggiolina Grand Tour I rigged up 12v computer fans ... one for each end triangle vent/window. They worked great. But that was back in '08 or '09 so no clue what brand, etc. But they were very quiet relative to CFM.

They sat very nicely and securely between the "X" of the lift mechanism.

In 2009 apart of one of my 'wander-arounds' we ended up at Toroweep at the beginning of July. 114º when we arrived in the mid-afternoon. Not sure it dipped below 85 that night. But the fans did a commendable job of making it tolerable to sleep.

 

[LaserNomad]

This is brilliant, I am going to do this and probably laser cut some sort of bracket to hold them. I should add that I dont current own a RTT so it might take a while.

 

[muditor]

I rigged up 12v computer fans ... one for each end triangle vent/window. They worked great.

Friend of mine just did that on his sailboat, ordered a set of computer fans https://goo.gl/BuKKJN DC 12v Perfect to be directly connected to the battery and works great !

 

[LandCruiserPhil]

USB powered, very efficient, low cost, 100% plastic, and whisper quiet.

 

[JCruse]

Ive got a kickass Caframo fan for regular fan duty, the problem is that without venting the tent, it just blows hot air on you.


I have this one below with the optional very strong clamp mount. The fan is well designed with no grill work to block airflow. The blade is made of soft plastic so it doesn't hurt if it hits a finger. And the clamp grabs the RTT pole with serious force and rubber pads.


Two speeds - Draw: 0.28 / 0.41 Amps, Airflow: 150 - 200 CFM

 

[LaserNomad]

If your venting fans were quiet enough and they had enough open cfm at the static pressure of the tent you could set them up on a cycle timer and really cut down on their battery drain.
What is a cycle timer?
5 Minute Adjustable On/Off Cyclic Timer
this is one that cycles every 5 min
So I think this is totally possible (I have built many water cooled computer systems and other cfm dependent systems) what I would suggest is measuring the max open space of the flap find the largest diameter circle that fits within it. Buy a computer fan that is SMALLER than the measured number. Cut a piece of plastic, or thin as a condom wood, or pie tin to fit the opening then cut a hole in that material the diameter of the fan. Make sure you can a fix with bolts, zipties, hot glue or epoxy a fan to that plate. Now epoxy or hot glue binder clips to that plate (or if you want to over kill it brackets and pop rivet) on the two sides that fit the flap. set it up in suction as that is the best way to fight static pressure.

 

[muditor]

When I wake up in the morning the inside of the tent is swelteringly hot from the sun beating down on the canvas

Had the same problem, but in my small sail boat. So, got this USB fan https://goo.gl/4qSM6C very quiet (brushless electric motor - so less problem with corrosion), small 4", USB, 2 settings (more would be better but heay...)

 

[JCruse]

Had the same problem, but in my small sail boat. So, got this USB fan https://goo.gl/4qSM6C very quiet (brushless electric motor - so less problem with corrosion), small 4", USB, 2 settings (more would be better but heay...)

Oh damn dude that looks awesome!

I think I saw it when searching for what I wound up getting, which is just a PC fan. Not bad though, 34cfm, silent, and just the size of the vent. Im gonna just clip it to the top of the triangle and let it hang down. Have to rig a better power system because right now I push a heavy cigarette socket cable into the hinge opening and use a Y splitter tangled up with all the fan, phone and light wires. LOL

Plus it just seems wrong to mount a cig plug on the end of the skinny USB fan wires.
What other small 12v connectors are out there?

 

[LaserNomad]

I like to wire my low voltage things with XT60 connectors use colored heat shrink to indicate what voltage things run on. Most are 12 volts but occasionally you have a werido amongst the bunch. Which is not a problem usually if you plug in a 36 volt device into a 12 volt psu now a 12v device in a 36v psu... that can let the smoke out. I buy them direct from china.