Mounting a fan in a canopy....blowing into or out of??

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NOLAGT

NOLAGT

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Dec 5, 2007
2,347
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Louisiana
My bro n laws tank has a canopy on it that has no openings. We did that to keep the sound down and now we are going to mount a fan to get some heat out and some humidity. At night with the lights off it gets all wet like early morning dew.

So when mounting the fan...should it blow fresh air into the canopy and have some other holes to let the humid are get pushed out? Or have the fan blowing the humid air out of the canopy and have some holes to let fresh air get sucked in?

To me it seems maybe the fan blowing into the canopy to not drag humid air through the fan to mess it up after time....

Its a 135 (6') and we have one 4" fan that im thinking about mounting in the middle on the top of the canopy blowing down on the water.
 
Get yourself 4 120mm PC fans (larger fans spin at a lower RPM, which means they'll be a lot quieter, but push more air) Put 2 on each side, 1 side intake and 1 side exhaust.

a 4.5" hole saw will be the tool of choice for cutting the openings

Yates Loons fans are some of the most reliable http://www.xoxide.com/yate-loon-mediumspeed-120.html and dirt cheap

These will be almost silent.

(I mod PC's so I've got a lot of experience with different types of fans)

Get yourself a cheapo computer power supply and mount it in the canopy to run them, or better yet mount the PSU in the stand (away from most of the moisture) and lengthen the fan leads to reach it.
 
I already have one of these....but that one you posted is about the same size, 2db louder but moves twice the air. I actually have 3 of these already...one for bro n law and 2 for when I get my tank up. The nice thing is they come wired up and even have a on off switch. Its not so much for the heat as it is for the humidity in the canopy since its sealed.

http://www.aquacave.com/cooling-fan-kit-475br-by-coralife-1026.html


So do I really need 2 or would one work?

If it ends up blowing out....and its on the back of the tank....would it mess the wall up behind it? The tank sits snug up to the wall so it will be blowing right on it....like 2" away at most.
 
I would try to direct the moisture out into the open air. You would probably really want to keep in way from the wall.
 
Pharaoh;2313653; said:
I would try to direct the moisture out into the open air. You would probably really want to keep in way from the wall.
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That's why I was going to put it on the top of the canopy.

So you would have the fan blowing out....with some open holes to draw in fresh outside air? If the fan was blowing out are other open holes needed ever or will it draw air in some other way like through gaps and cracks?
 
I'd have at least 1 fan on each the right and left side of the canopy, 1 intake, the other side exhaust, or you could cut small vents in the sides of the canopy and have the fans installed on the top of the canopy exhausting the air straight up.
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Or better yet, find some louvered vent covers (like for your homes HVAC system) install those in the side, and the 2 fans in the top. I'm 99% sure they make wood ones you could stain to match the canopy.

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I would like to keep the vents off the side....the color would be hard to match...its painted and glazed. But i'll ask the bro in law what he wants to do. I might just put 2 on the top one on each end....one blowing in and one blowing out.
 
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