Hi Uk420,

Can anyone shed some light on a problem im having just got a fan speed controller delivered and it doesn't seem to slow the fan ive tried everything, im using a vortice 250 fan rated for 0.9a on the 3a controller made by trade supplies. Has anyone heard of this happening before i think it might be a voltage problem if anything but am not sure.

Has the controller got a percentage dial on it for when the fan is idling e.g got mine set at 25% might be a dilly question but my mate had one with a little screw setting that was not that obvious.just a thought.

Hi the controller has a nob that you can adjust for speed and a switch saying adjust on one end and full on the other so ive tried it in all different ways ill take a look for another screw but i think there was only 2 to open the unit and one holding the variable nob.

thanx for the reply

Just an update after needlessly splashing out on a more expensive fan speed controller from greens with a variac the fan still runs at 100% even on setting 1 which should equate to 20% or so of its speed so it would seem my fan is broken some how inside i have emailed the manufacturer about it to see what can be done but i think im well over warranty

My knoledge on these things is limited at best but im assuming its something like a resister has blown ect ect

It's probably the fan controller that has the problem, not the fan...

You're not slowing down your extraction rate are you?

Hi eri yeh im slowing my extractor its well to big for the room/wattage plus i have a massive intake im finding lights on temps are great but lights off are to cold or could be better even with oil filled rad this is because the outake is just to big needs slowing!

Its deffo the fan mate cant be the controllers as i fist noticed this with my primair and posted here thinking it was that i then bought another 3amp controller only to have the same problem then this veriak one from greens brand new just in! and same problem. I have the same make of fan but smaller for my intake and its on a cheap controller and has no problems.

The give away point is that about a year and a half ago the fan was functioning properly on my primair and i was able to slow it down no problem then all of a sudden one day it lost the ability to do so i doubt 3 speed controllers of different makes and price ranges are faulty (DOA) deffo the fan guess its just old how long do in-lines last for anyway i reckon mines is pushing 3 years maybe but not continually used still strong as feck thou.

As a variac actually decreases the voltage when turned down, I can't see how one could not work on your fan(s) if it were wired in right.

Hi Scribb|e

yeh that has crossed my mind but carnt think of anything else ive not got the ability to take pictures and get them to my pc but ill figure something out and try and get some pictures of the internal connections of the controller from greens and maybe you or someone can tell me if ive wired it incorrectly?

There were secondary instructions in the packaging for wiring but both sets of instructions didn't seem to correspond to the fans terminals inside was totally different but labeled! so i just wired the live neutral and earth to the terminals that were addressed as such one side for power the other for fan.

Just so you know im using this fan controller.

http://www.greenshorticulture.co.uk/Growro...roller-1298.asp

Yeah - try and get some pictures up because I'm pretty much convinced that it's got to be some kind of wiring issue because there's no way that a variac would have no effect at all if were wired in right.

You turn the variac down, it decreases the voltage, and the fan slows down. If it has no effect at all then I can't see how this could be some kind of fault with the fan. The variac, maybe - if it's internal wrapped fine copper wire had shorted somewhere then that could make the fan unresponsive to turning the variac's knob, but a simple 2 second check with a multimeter would tell you what's going on there straight away.

We need piccies, or else we are just guessing and thats not good

Get some piccies up