When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Just got to take the TA to my first car show of the year, ~3 1/2 hours from home. Had a real good time but lost both Derale fuse holders in the process. After about an hour of driving the car started getting hot. Barely made it through the hour long parade peaking at 235 deg, in 70 deg weather. Underhood temps actually got so hot that it melted the glue/sealant out of the bottom of my Painless Wiring 7-circuit fuse block. At the show, I found that one holder had completely melted out, along with melting the fuse. The other had melted out and hadn't yet popped the fuse. So to err on the safe side, I had a family member bring my truck & trailer up (8 hours out of their Sunday off, and $75 in extra gas). So I paid the price for not addressing a well advertised problem.
I'm admitting my stupidity to motivate anyone that has installed their Derale fans with the OEM wiring and hasn't upgraded it, please be proactive and save yourself the above headaches lol. I think I'm going to try some auto-reset 30A circuit breakers.
I'll upload a pic tonight for the hell of it.
Last edited by V-10 Killer; Jun 30, 2015 at 04:41 PM.
I just had one melt on me too this past week! It was only one though which was really odd. My fans are wired in on separate relays and separate fuse holders.
I just went to autozone and got another fuse holder, hopefully it was just a fluke.
Can you guys clarify a little for me please? I just finished installing two Derales on my 02 front mount system but I bought two Derale wiring harness kits from Jegs and used the factory fan wires for trigger wires. Are you saying that the derale fuse holder melted due to over current or you tied into the factory harness and that it melted? I'm trying to figure out if I need to open my wiring harness to avoid a potential problem. Thanks!
Is it possible this could be a wiring issue as in where the power and grounds are sourced? As I stated I used the factory fan feeds for trigger wires, ran the power for the derales off the positive post on the DS inner fender and used the individual grounds from the factory fans. Is this what everyone else does too and still has issues melting fuses? Has anybody here ran the new derale kit they sell in Jegs and had issues?
Here's a few pics of what I pulled out tonight. And to clarify, this is how I had it wired:
Yellow (trigger hot) to 12v+
Red (main power hot) to 12v+
Orange (main power hot) to fans
Black (trigger ground) to PCM trigger wires
You can see in the last pic that it started to overheat the plastic in the relay pigtail too.
I picked up some 30 amp circuit breakers from the auto parts store tonight. We'll see if that's enough or if I'll have to move to a 40A. Derale advertises that they only pull 25 amps when running, but I'm sure they spike a bit turning on.
Hey fellas, so I went out and took as look at what I had and the kits I bought from Jegs came with 40/60 Amp circuit breakers and 30 amp fuses. Upon attempting to remove the fuse to inspect and verify the amp rating it did this. I've come to the determination that the fuses are cheap as **** and need replacement with some good ATC fuses. I'm not sure about using 40 amps fuses though when it came with 30's. Has anyone put new 30's in it and had the same issue? The breakers are rated at 40 so maybe that's what it needs?
Hey fellas, so I went out and took as look at what I had and the kits I bought from Jegs came with 40/60 Amp circuit breakers and 30 amp fuses. Upon attempting to remove the fuse to inspect and verify the amp rating it did this. I've come to the determination that the fuses are cheap as **** and need replacement with some good ATC fuses. I'm not sure about using 40 amps fuses though when it came with 30's. Has anyone put new 30's in it and had the same issue? The breakers are rated at 40 so maybe that's what it needs?
I did manage to get one of the 30A fuses out at the car show and replace it with a new 30A Bussman ATC fuse, which promptly popped. Gonna have to check that circuit out before I trust it, but the other fan ran at least an hour on a 30A.
Thanks for this thread. It prompted me to go ahead and change my fuses\fuse holders on the Derale's I just installed. Hopefully that will take care of any future problems with it
Thanks for this thread. It prompted me to go ahead and change my fuses\fuse holders on the Derale's I just installed. Hopefully that will take care of any future problems with it
Has anyone verified the claim that their fans draw 25A?
A simple clamp on amp meter and you will know for sure.
A circuit shoud be designed as to allow the system to be running at 80/85% of rated.
IE: a 30A fuse should not be expected to survive at 30A load.
A motor start up draw could be waaay higher than operating. [Check both w/ the amp clamp.] Amp clamp from Radio Shack will work w/ your Fluke meter.
Volt drop tests on both the + & - sides needs to be made.
Check the integrity of the grounds.
Lastly.. the cheap assed Ho Chi Min fuses are JUNK. BTDT Just threw an entire assortment in the trash.
Most Clamp on amp meters only work on ac current. Things like this are why I only use quality parts like Ford Taurus relay banks and factory fuses plus good quality aftermarket fuse panels. I harvest the relay banks and fuses from salvage yards every trip there. Nothing like OEM quality. From the pics, it looks like the fuse holder failed and not so much like the fuse itself. The heat is generated from weak connection at the fuse terminal to fuse holder connection. It needs to have sufficient contact to reduce the contact resistance to near zero ohms to lower current loss between the connection.
Just checked and they spec it at 265 watts and doing the math, that's just over 20 amps, running. Startup current would be a surge to get it spinning but a quality 30 amp fuse and connection should handle that.
Last edited by aknovaman; Jul 3, 2015 at 08:41 AM.
Plenty of cheap DC clamp meters available and they're very handy to have.
But if the fan runs 25A and your fan will be on a lot, then you absolutely need better wiring setup.
I'd never want a continuous load higher than about 2/3's the rating of the fuse and holder.
And if you want good quality blade fuses, go to a junkyard and get them from a cars original fuse box. Most aftermarket stuff is just cheap chinese *****.
I havent had any issues with mine yet. But my fans rarely come on. 180* thermostat and first fan set at 195, 2nd at 205, with a Griffin radiator. 2nd fan has never had to turn on
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Slideshow: From wobbling harmonic balancers to failed EBCMs, these are the issues that define long-term C5 ownership and what repairs typically involve.
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Slideshow: A modern Camaro transformed into a retro icon, this limited-run "Bandit" build blends nostalgia with brute force in a way few revivals manage.
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Slideshow: Cadillac didn't just crash the high-performance luxury vehicle party, it showed up loud, supercharged, and occasionally a little unhinged...
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Slideshow: A one-off sports car that looks like a vintage Italian exotic-but hides a C6 Corvette underneath-just sold for the price of a new mid-engine Corvette.
Another Derale fuse holder failure 
