A few Questions: Fantastic fan, 110v to 12v

Dr_Doom

Hello guys,

I purchased a 2020 Tag XL Boondock two weeks ago. We took it out on a quick boondocking trip last week to test it out and see how we would do on battery, what to pack, how to store things etc...

I have been searching this forum and the Facebook groups for a month or so getting ideas on what we would like to do to the trailer. Most are pretty straight forward, but there are a few I have questions on. Your help would be greatly appreciated.

My two main questions are for the electricians. I was a mechanic, I do a lot of wood working and metal fab projects... Electric is not my strong suit, I can do wiring and follow directions easily but I dont understand much of it.

1. The Fantastic Fan. even on the lowest setting it is too powerful/loud. I would like to install a PWM controller. I have found a few posts about this here and other places, but non of them mention the air reversal switch. The 2020 comes with a Fantastic Fan 1250, it has 3 speeds and the air reversal switch (no thermostat). To turn the fan off you can either put the fan speed to 0, or place the air control rocker switch to the center.

I would like to retain the factory reversal switch, but use the PWM to control just the fan speed if possible. Which PWM would I need?

PWM with switch Could I use this and splice the reversal switch wiring to the PWM board?

PWM no reversing switch Or would I only need to use this and leave the reversal wiring alone?

2. 110v outlets. I will probably never use this trailer hooked up to shore power. We only go to BLM, National Forest, or camp sites without trailer hookups. Is it possible to convert the 110v outlets to 12v DC plug/USB? Im mostly wanting to have a 12v outlet behind the TV so I can plug in my android media player so we can watch a movie while boondocking. I assume all the 110v outlets run through the converter. Would it be as simple as finding the right 110v wire on the back of the converter and adding it to the 12v fuse on the converter?

I will post a new thread with all our mods and pictures when I am finished.

tagurit

You will need the board with the reversing switch, the FF switch just swaps the hot and ground leads and will not work with the PWM. I left the FF switch in place and wired it as an on/off switch for the PWM, otherwise it is always on even though the fan may not be operating. I have a write up somewhere, I will post a link to it when I remember where it is.

Dr_Doom

awesome, thats exactly what I was looking for thank you

tagurit

Here's the link to the PWM install, I wrote it up from memory, should have done it as I was working and took some pictures, oh well
https://www.facebook.com/download/2347242032268242/Fan Controller Installation.docx?av=100002354411280&eav=AfZLLyO_8ISvy8hqR0u8jZ0YcDxNMUTNzpeDo0HM16lfjlcTHg1Ywr5OgnpT0-2Juds&hash=AcosWx2cQ-SUWomH

JamesDow

I also thought the Fan-Tastic Vent Fan produced too much noise. I contacted Dometic Customer Service and they sent me out a new fan (no cost). While the new one made a difference, it was not the whisper quite I had hoped for.

• Hope the PWM install does the trick for you.

I also have taken a rechargeable 9 inch fan with me that I use tent camping. I found that it produced the quite operation I sought, while not drawing on the trailer battery.

As for watching movies, I have over 240 movies on a hard drive, along with 95 music videos and numerous short video files. I use that I use with my projector. The USB input with my T@G is not set up for video (pictures and music ok).
To get my hard drive up and working with the T@G television, I purchased a used Sony Blu-ray player (BDP S3700 $36.99) cut the cord coming from the 12V power adapter and wired a 12V plugin adapter which plugs right into the T@G 12 volt receptacle fine. I built a little shelf for the player and seems to do just fine in meeting my needs.

Another option I have just started to play with is replacing the Sony with a Fire Stick 4K. With an adapter it is possible to use a hard drive and run directly into the HDMI of the Jensen TV. If it works, that could make life even easier. Like my 9 inch fan, the Fire Stick can operate off of a USB power block, saving the T@G battery.
Bottom line, I do not watch much in the T@G unless rain, cold or insects drive me inside. The projector is for 110 volt use only. Works great against a sheet or even on the back of the T@G.
.

Dr_Doom

@JamesDow said:
I also thought the Fan-Tastic Vent Fan produced too much noise. I contacted Dometic Customer Service and they sent me out a new fan (no cost). While the new one made a difference, it was not the whisper quite I had hoped for.

• Hope the PWM install does the trick for you.

James,

While the Fantastic Fan is louder than I would like, I dont actually find it that loud. I took a nap with it on "1" and it was fine. I also think the fan on its lowest setting moves more air than I need for night time circulation, which is what it will be used for 90% of the time. Just a little moving air in the summer and ventilation in cooler months.

I do have a battery powered Ryobi fan, but is is just about as loud as the Dometic so I didn't bring it wit me.

I think the PWM is just the fix I need and for only $15. The lower battery drain is an added bonus.

@JamesDow said:
As for watching movies, I have over 240 movies on a hard drive, along with 95 music videos and numerous short video files. I use that I use with my projector. The USB input with my T@G is not set up for video (pictures and music ok).
To get my hard drive up and working with the T@G television, I purchased a used Sony Blu-ray player (BDP S3700 $36.99) cut the cord coming from the 12V power adapter and wired a 12V plugin adapter which plugs right into the T@G 12 volt receptacle fine.

As for the movies I think we are on the same page I have a 10TB hard drive at home loaded with movies, TV shows and music.

My plan is to load a thumbdrive with some movies and play it on a Xiaomi Mi Box S. The Mi Box would connect directly to the TV HDMI, and it has audio out that I would connect to the back of the Jensen stereo. The Mi Box has the added benefit of having a bluetooth remote so I could leave the unit out of the way in the cabinet behind the TV.

I chose the Mi Box because it runs VLC and Kodi well (h265 encoding too). I wont be using it to stream so it is a better choice for me over something like a Fire or Roku stick. (The Roku's also wont play all audio codecs from downloaded media)

I think this will be simple and work well.

@JamesDow said:
As for watching movies, I have over 240 movies on a hard drive, along with 95 music videos and numerous short video files. I use that I use with my projector.

This is something Im very interested in. I do have family and group camping trips a few times a year and it would be really cool to be able to have everyone watch a movie as a group. We could hang a sheet off the awning. I briefly looked at batter powered projectors but they seem to be very poor quality. I wonder how much something like this TopVision Projector would drain the battery.

I should add... I have a basic group 24 deep cycle battery that the trailer came with. I also have factory solar on the roof (we were parked in half shade). We use two Yeti's for food and drinks. On my last 3 day outing we barely used any battery, and the solar topped us off during the day. We left with almost a full battery

Dr_Doom

@tagurit said:
Here's the link to the PWM install, I wrote it up from memory, should have done it as I was working and took some pictures, oh well
https://www.facebook.com/download/2347242032268242/Fan Controller Installation.docx?av=100002354411280&eav=AfZLLyO_8ISvy8hqR0u8jZ0YcDxNMUTNzpeDo0HM16lfjlcTHg1Ywr5OgnpT0-2Juds&hash=AcosWx2cQ-SUWomH

when I click the link it says I dont have permission to view the document.

I did find a good thread On the TAB vanilla forums that has pictures and very detailed PDF instructions.

tagurit

Fan Controller Installation.

I tried to describe this the best I could. I wish I had taken some pictures but If you watch any of the YouTube videos out there you should be able to follow along. Much of this is easy but there are some tricky parts and I am assuming you have the same fan and controller I did. Good luck!

Tools needed: Phillips screwdriver, jewelers or other small screwdriver, wire dykes, adjustable wrench, Dremel tool (or razor saw and small file)

Parts needed: motor controller (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0100KN9IY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1), six feet of 20 gauge insulated wire, connectors of your choice, I used shrink wrap butt connectors

Make sure your battery switch is off.

Snap down the fan screen and remove the five screws plus the screws in the lock knob and vent lid handle and drop the fan shroud.

Disconnect the four wires hanging down, the black wire to the fuse holder, the two white wires and the red wire.

Remove the three speed rheostat from the shroud.

Unplug the rheostat from the controller board. Mark the wires to the reversing switch so when you remove them they will get reattached in the right order and then unscrew the terminals and remove the switch.

You will have to cut an opening in the fan shroud for the reversing switch. On the back of the shroud you will see a couple of adjoining rectangular patterns ready to cut out, the small one will fit the switch. I used a razor saw and file but a Dremel tool would be easier. The switch just snaps into place when you get the opening to the right size.

I mounted the control board rheostat in the same hole that the original rheostat was mounted.

There is only room for the control board in the corner of the shroud where you just mounted the new reversing switch so go ahead and reattach the four wires from the switch to the board.

Now the hard part!

Because of where the board has to go, most of the rest of the wires have to be extended. First, measure around the shroud from the board to the new rheostat and cut and splice extensions to the three rheostat wires.

Connect the black wire on the shroud from the fuse holder to the bottom left spade connector on the original fan reversing switch. Splice one of the cut off connectors to a wire long enough reach the board from the original reversing switch and run it from middle spade connector on the left side of the switch to the "+" power screw terminal on the board. Then, splice an extension to the second white wire hanging down and connect it to the "-" power terminal.

Next, the red and white wires to the fan motor have to be extended, I cut off the connectors and added about a foot or so to each, they get connected to the "Motor" screw terminals on the board, it doesn't matter which one goes to which side.

Connect the black wire hanging down to the other side of the fuse holder and you should be ready to give it a try so switch your battery back on. The old fan reversing switch works as a power switch for the controller, middle is off and one way or the other will be on, you’ll have to experiment. I’m pretty sure I remember the correct connections to the old fan reversing switch but if there is a power problem that’s what I would check. The new rheostat should run the fan from a stop to full speed, also test the new reversing switch.

If everything works, tuck the controller in the corner of the shroud and place all the wires along the outside of the shroud edge as you fit the shroud up inside the fan housing. Start a couple of the mounting screws to hold the shroud in place as you make sure the lid lock shaft and lid raising shaft line up. You may have to slide a finger up along side the lid lock to pull it down into place. When everything is lined up, fit the rest of the mounting screws and the knob screws and carefully tighten them, they can strip easily.

Fourman110

I switched to a Maxxfan Deluxe. It’s quieter, more powerful, has more speed choices and comes with its own cover. One of my favorite mods and if it was an option, would be a great up charge item from the factory. Wasn’t a difficult mod at all.

Dr_Doom

@Fourman110 said:
I switched to a Maxxfan Deluxe. It’s quieter, more powerful, has more speed choices and comes with its own cover. One of my favorite mods and if it was an option, would be a great up charge item from the factory. Wasn’t a difficult mod at all.

I looked at those as well, the built in rain guard looks awesome. I would get the 6200k with the manual controls. But at $250 Im going to try the PWM mod for $15 first.

JamesDow

The LG projector that I use, with hard drive consumes 98 watts running. Using an inverter a deep cycle battery will power it for about 1.25 hrs. Pretty much a no-go for movie watching.
The alternative is a generator. I use a 900 watt propane generator which can power everything on my T@G no problem.
The quiet alternative (depending on the vehicle) is using inverter and the tow vehicle at idle. I find it much quieter than a generator, but obviously uses some gas. Never had an issue with this method over many years.
.

Dr_Doom

@JamesDow said:
The LG projector that I use, with hard drive consumes 98 watts running. Using an inverter a deep cycle battery will power it for about 1.25 hrs. Pretty much a no-go for movie watching.
The alternative is a generator. I use a 900 watt propane generator which can power everything on my T@G no problem.
The quiet alternative (depending on the vehicle) is using inverter and the tow vehicle at idle. I find it much quieter than a generator, but obviously uses some gas. Never had an issue with this method over many years.

James,
I have read a few of your posts about the Baja/Ryobi propane generator. Very interesting to me since I dont see myself ever needing large generator. After my first outing using almost no battery I kinda wrote off getting a generator.

I do have a newer Toyota 4Runner with a group 27 battery, and a built in inverter. This might be a good alternative for the projector.

JamesDow

Just point the 4Runner tailpipe away from your audience, and you are good to go.