How to run a 12v fan all night.

[Freerollin']

Hello, I am going to be hitting the road soon.  I bought a '02 Safari and just will go very simple until the spring (foam mat inside, some plastic draws, a cooler, shower at gyms, etc) when I may rip up all the interior and build it up a lot better.   However, I would like to run a fan in it in the evenings (I bought a endless breeze by fantastic fan) as I sleep so much better with the fan blowing on me.   I tried it last night, on low, and left it running to see if my car battery could take it.  Nope.  Dead this morning.   So, what's my simplest (and cheap) way to run this thing all night?     Do I have to go all the way to a solar panel and/or hooking a house battery up to the car battery?   I am not technical at all although I may be able to find some help.   And I don't want anything in the car that gives off harmful fumes or the like.   I will be driving probably most days though I will also from time to time probably be boondocking for 2-3 days straight.   Thanks for any help on this.....

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I'm sorry to say that there is really no simple, magic answer to this situation.

You need a separate battery to power the fan all night.  And you need a way to recharge that battery every day after using it.

If you're driving EVERY day, and you're driving enough, you may get by with charging it off your vehicle's alternator while you're driving.  If you are going to be sitting in one place for two or three days, you are either going to need enough solar to recharge it fully, or you will need to park someplace where there is an electrical outlet you can plug a battery charger in.

 

[ZoNiE]

How old is your battery? I run my fantastic vents all night sometimes in my trailer and have no issues in the morning, of course, I have two GC2 6V batteries (2X the AH) and don't need to start the engine in the truck with them, but I can fire up my honda 4K generator.

Is there room in an Astro engine compartment for a second battery? I presume not, but someone here may know.

You could get two AGM batteries and put one under the passenger seat or somewhere in the van and connect to the charging system with a isolator so you don't run down the engine start battery, but charge both while driving...

Another solution is to get the Trucker Fan. It takes D Cells, and you can get two sets of rechargable D cells but you would need to be able to charge them. There may be 12V chargers out there, or use a small inverter to charge them if the chargers are all 120VAC.

You can also consider a Ryobi One+ 18V fan. Ryobi does make a 12V charger for their batteries. I have one. Works great.

It never hurts to have a cordless drill, and IMO, these are the best ones out there.

Click Here for a review

 

[Freerollin']

Ok, I may just have to go Solar I guess.  I was hoping to wait until spring to do that kind of stuff but it may not wait.  I will have to look into those rechargeable and rechargeable battery fans, I didn't realize they made rechargeable D's actually.    There is also this:
https://www.amazon.com/Antigravity-...70936032&sr=8-2&keywords=lithium+jump+starter

I wonder how long that would run a fan?  It has a DC output it looks like.  hmmm.   I could also go USB fan I guess and get a rechargeable brick or something but I doubt those have much power.  Thanks for your time folks.

 

[ZoNiE]

I used to carry a battery pack like that for my laptop. It only had the computer port, but would make my pre-Mac laptop last all the way across the Atlantic...

D-Cells are not cheap, two sets of 8 would be around $100

Here's an example...

The Ryobi fan is $30 ($40 for the dual power, worth it) plus buy a drill/charger/batteryfor $99 and you have a better deal, plus a good drill/driver to boot. Wait till Christmas, and there is always a sale.

You could just buy the batteries and the 12V powered charger separately... $40 per battery + $40 for the 12V powered charger...

Too bad they don't bundle the 12V powered charger with a drill and a couple of batteries. Add the fan to that, and it would be a perfect package. Much better than the one with the Drill, sawzall, 4" circular saw, and flashlight or dust buster for $200

 

[mayble]

Another solution is to get the Trucker Fan. It takes D Cells, and you can get two sets of rechargable D cells but you would need to be able to charge them. There may be 12V chargers out there, or use a small inverter to charge them if the chargers are all 120VAC.

I just picked up this AC/DC charger:
https://www.amazon.com/D2-Rechargea...0945511&sr=8-9&keywords=battery+charger+ac/dc
Haven't had a chance to try the 12v option yet but it's promising.  On household current it charges much faster than any others I've used. AA + spacer = D cell.

I also have a cheap solar powered battery charger but I haven't had much opportunity to test it.

 

[Freerollin']

Ok great, thanks everybody!  This forum is so helpful, amazing.  I like the idea of the rechargeable fan, but am worried about treating the battery right as it says somewhere that it should not be used for over 4 hours straight without recharging as you risk running the battery to low and hurting the battery (or something to that effect).  As I like to leave it on as I sleep, I'm afraid this would not work for me.   I may have to look into getting a new battery for my van as it seems a lot of people have luck running the 12v all night but mine was dead this morning.   As much as I want to figure out the solar stuff, i'm just not sure I have time until later in the winter/early spring as it's pretty far over my head.   So I think that leaves, for now, the battery powered ones with the 12v charger (thanks Mable, I had looked a bit and didn't see the 12v charger).  I found this fan 

https://www.amazon.com/O2COOL-5-Inc...F8&qid=1470949191&sr=8-3&keywords=battery+fan, 

and though it maybe not the strongest, I like that it only uses 2 D batteries and seems to run like 50 hours or so on them, so If I could get 4 charged up, (2 sets), this could last awhile using it at night only.  (mostly in the day I will be outside or doing something else).   So, that's where I am at right now.  Thanks again for all the great suggestions.

 

[DannyB1954]

Maybe a different brand fan that uses less power. For portable, O2Cool makes fans that operate with low power. They do not cost that much, so you might give one a try. Some of their 10" fans can operate up to 53 hours on 6 D cells, so I don't see how they could flaten a good car battery overnight. http://www.o2-cool.com/fd10018a?page_id=845 Instead of using the AC adaptor, get a 12v to 9v DC adaptor. https://www.amazon.com/SMAKN®-Conve...id=1470950501&sr=8-3&keywords=12v+dc+to+9v+dc

For roof fans, I am thinking about going with the Maxxfan brand. http://www.airxcel.com/maxxair/products/fans
This site has a power consumption chart for Maxxair vs Fan-tastic. The 10 speed models are not cheap, but on the lowest setting only use .2 amps. http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/...an-vs-maxxfan-comparison-including-amp-usage/

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Before you go to the expense of solar + house batteries, you might want to search for some of Sternwakes posts; he has done a lot of testing and using small muffin fans that draw less than an amp hour.

O2Cool fans (the 12 volt/8 D cell ones, sold by Walmart) will run for a long time on D cell batteries.

 -- Spiff

 

[highdesertranger]

first off how many amps does it take to run your current fan? trying to run off your main battery is not a good option imo. but it sounds like your main battery might be weak. that mini jumper you linked to is only 18ah, I got a chuckle when they said, "a massive 18000 mah" ha ha rate it in mili amps so the number is bigger, dazzle them with big numbers. highdesertranger

 

[Freerollin']

Ha, yea, good 'ol Marketing!! Is there any jump starters or mini jump starters preferable, that are worth anything, as, barring getting a house battery which I may try to do without until spring, I sure would feel better having something that I could jump myself with as I will be parked in some out of the way places here and there.

 

[highdesertranger]

that might be an ok jumper I don't know. however, if you run your starting battery down that low so it will not start your vehicle it's going to take like 8 hours of highway driving to get it back to 100%. if you don't recharge your battery everyday you will drastically shorten it's life. highdesertranger

 

[Freerollin']

Yea, thanks. I just bought this van a week or so ago. I am afraid the battery is not in the best of shape. I think I will go towards the rechargable D battery Fans for now so as to not put any undue pressure on the battery until I can get a new one at some point.

 

[RVTravel]

The endless breeze fan on low is about 1.2 amps. You could also look into the Roadpro fan that is 0.5 amp on low.

https://www.amazon.com/RoadPro-RP8000-Indoor-Outdoor-Power/dp/B00KJGRLJI