whats the cheapest and easiest way to power computer fans? also can someone post up maybe a pic of what the power supply would look like.
Take like a CD player adapter, cut off the part you put into the CD player and there will be 2 wires. Then cut the part of the fan off that you plug into the computer parts (the side that isnt the fan, basically) and match the wires together and plug it up. Normally 9V is what you want to use (so i read...) but i think it was like 14-15V that made it run at full power.
Go to Goodwill or Value Village. They usually have a big supply of extra power adaptors for about $1 a peice. Just make sure the OUTPUT has the same volts as your fan. The amps should be over 300. I'm not totally positive about the amps part because every 9 volt device can have amps varying from 50 to 1000.
Cut the end off the fan to expose the wires, find a adapter 12v(OUTPUT), now do the same with the end of the adapter. Get some electrical tape and wrap each wire accordingly and your done, you can daisy chain several fans to a adapter but dont go over the top.
OMFG! So much advice, all of them incomplete or wrong. (don't take this personal people) ALL and I mean ALL personal computer fans on the planet use 12 Volt DC. I've personally opened HUNDREDS of machines and all of them use 12V DC for the fans. AC power will do you no good here. Get an old powersupply for a old modem or such. Usually they are 12V. All of them are DC. All fans have at least 2 sometimes 3 wires. You only need the black one and the red one. Red = +. Forget the 3rd wire for its use is to signal the computer when it has made a turn so it can adjust the voltage for the required RPMs. But you cannot go wrong with the wires on the power supply's side because the fan will rotate in the opposite way if connected wrongly and push the air the other way around. Just for you , the manufacturer has made a little arrow in the plastic pointing in which way the air SHOULD go. It's on the side of the fan. With this you can figure out which wire is + after you cut the connector off the wires on the powersupply. Whatever you do, do NOT short-circuit such simple power supplies. They are NOT fused and burn REALLY well.
I've found that the easiet and cheapest way to power them is to use a computer's power supply out of an old case. You can also buy them on ebay for under 10 bucks. My cloning cabinents are all vented with computer fans and powered with used computer pSU.
Agreed very possible. Just make sure its a powersupply which does : a. Not check for the presence of a mainboard b. Switch on/off with a big fat switch for mains/utility power (110V/230V) and not those that have extra skinny little wires for a small on/off switch that is actually digitally controlled. Anything from 1998 or before will do fine. The ones you need are called AT powersupplies, the ones you DONT want are called ATX These powersupplies are generally very safe, the low voltage side that is.
while I agree that AT are easier to set up, ATX are easier to find. It's simple to convert them to power on without a MOBO. Just jump the green wire to any ground wire (if it also has a sensing or ststus wire, jump that to another ground wire - grounds are black) and you're in business! I leave mine switched on all the time and it's controlled by a set of timers and a surge protector to make it easier to swich on and off (I don't like reaching all the way up there to flip that switch on the back of the power supply - yes, I'm lazy). The reason I use a computer PSU is because, again, I'm lasy. They already have molex connectors on it. I just extend the wires I need to with some crimps or solder and whatever fans I want to run plug into it without any mods. On one cabinet I have a fan controller and temp sensor that gives me RPM readouts on four different fans and temp readouts on 4 different sensors placed throughout my box on it's little LCD screen. It's way overkill but it looks pretty damned cool. The real advantage to using a PSU instead of a phone charger or something is WATTAGE. I can power better fans with one power supply instead of using a phone charger for each fan.