Converter Fan Noise

bruceh · 02-13-2008, 09:45 AM

My converter is mounted under the stove cabinet and is quite noisy when the fan is running. Has anyone had success in making it quieter?

I noticed that is later coaches that the converter is located in a storage compartment.

I was thinking about placing a thin piece of wood over the converter with sound deadening material on top. This could be done without affecting airflow, as there is plenty of volume behind it.

Any thoughts?

bruceh · 02-13-2008, 09:45 AM

My converter is mounted under the stove cabinet and is quite noisy when the fan is running. Has anyone had success in making it quieter?

I noticed that is later coaches that the converter is located in a storage compartment.

I was thinking about placing a thin piece of wood over the converter with sound deadening material on top. This could be done without affecting airflow, as there is plenty of volume behind it.

Any thoughts?

TB-ONE · 02-20-2008, 05:14 PM

I can't help you with the noise but mine is under the refridgerator and is quite noisy. I was thinking about moving it down to a compartment.

John_Canfield · 02-20-2008, 06:11 PM

Are you sure the fan is okay? Sometimes bearings will go bad creating a noisy motor. If you are just hearing wind noise (air movement), then you could create an insulated baffle where the air has to turn two corners to get in (or out.)

Davel · 02-20-2008, 07:05 PM

bruceh,

Our 37B coach has a sub-wolfer speaker mounted just below the fridge that broadcasts the sound into the living area. I'm going to get a foam baffle to cover the rear of the speaker as well as your idea of foam sound deadener to block the sound from coming out under the stove and cabinets. An internet search for "speaker baffle" will give several sources. Hope this helps.

Dave

Wizard · 02-21-2008, 03:35 AM

Mine was like yours, mounted under the stove. Too noisy for me. I thought the fan must be going bad. I called the fan company who put me in touch with their distributor. They sent me a new fan free of charge. I was tickled, but guess what, it didn't make any difference. I've learned to live with it. If anyone finds anything else to do, I also would be very interested.

BillArf · 02-21-2008, 05:20 AM

Unfortunately, sound proofing holds in heat. You will hear the converter less but that noisy fan will be forced to run more in an attempt to keep the converter cool enough. My question to you is, is this converter a Progressive Dynamics 9100 series converter? If so read the following which I posted on this forum in another thread. If you do have one of the PD 9100 series units with a non variable fan you can contact PD and they will let you exchange your unit for a variable speed 9100 series unit. There may be shipping fees involved, etc. but I know if you are lets say diplomatic with PD they will help you in obtaining a quieter version of their 9100 series unit. Of course another route would be to just replace the 9100 series unit with a 9200 series unit at your expense. The PD 9200 units have a very, very quiet variable speed "Intelligent" fan that is very easy to live with. Anyway for more info read on...

<span class="ev_code_BLUE">You will hear nothing most of the time or a little audible sound being generated by your PD9260. (Most of the PD 9100 series units with non-variable speed fans could be quite noisy) If you turn on all your 12v lights in the RV lets say and then after a few minutes go to the PD9260 you will hear a little sound being generated after a few minutes especially as the PD unit warms up under load. You can occasionally hear a slight hum and a very slight fan noise. The fan on the newer Progressive Dynamics units will kick on when needed and stay on only as as needed. The newer variable speed or as PD calls it an "Intelligent" style fan is very, very quiet. Older PD units without the variable speed fan but with a regular muffin fan make quite a bit of noise when they are under load/warm.. When installing any converter, be sure the fan exhaust path is as unrestricted as possible. Anything you can do to improve circulation in the cabinet where the PD unit is will be a plus. Your PD units fan will come on more often and stay on longer on days that are very warm. Poor ventilation where you have the converter will cause the unit to run warmer, fan to stay on, etc.</span>

.

bruceh · 02-22-2008, 07:51 AM

I still have the Magnetek 7440 that came with the coach, replacing has not been a priority but maybe it should be.

I didn't get carried away boxing in the the converter. I placed a piece of 1/8 wood over the top of the converter to make the sound go around it. It attnenuated the high frequency sound a little.

There is plenty of air flow behind the converter for cooling.

I will start researching the PD converters. Thanks for the input.

BillArf · 02-22-2008, 08:14 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by bruceh:

I will start researching the PD converters. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Search eBAY for Progressive Dynamics converters.
Prices there are far better then you will find most anywhere. Offered are new and refurbished units.
Here is one eBAY vendor with perfect feedback selling a NEW PD9260 for $155.00 (2 year warranty) and he pays the shipping to you. He will even add the pendant which really is a plus for $10.00. He is also offering a remanufactured PD9260 for $135.00 which carries a year manufacturer's warranty. He ships that unit free also.

Bayway · 02-22-2008, 11:16 AM

I also have the noisy Parallux 7400 converter. The PD 9200 isa great converter, had one in my previous unit. It makes hardly any noise and keeps the batteries in good shape. I only checked for water one time per year. My batteries in a 2005 Itasca 33V are cooked by the Parallux converter. Need to add water every 3 weeks. Maybe the batteries are bad by now.

I will change converters when I buy new batteries. Maybe you should consider same.

Bayway 2005 Itasca Sunrise ##V