# Stove top fan



## Nick69 (23 Oct 2010)

SWMBO wants one of those Ecofan 'stove top fans' for the woodburner in the living room. Looking at pictures of them and the such I am wondering if its something that can be made instead of dropping the £100+ for one.


Anyone have any thoughts about it, I like making things and trying to save money too lol

Nick :lol:


----------



## SketchUp Guru (23 Oct 2010)

You probably could make one if you can get a thermopile, a low voltage motor, a lightweight fan and the aluminum parts to make the hot and cold side of the stand.

This might give you a start.


----------



## Nick69 (23 Oct 2010)

I was thinking about picking up something like this CPU cooler, attaching the fan+motor, putting a peltier on the bottom and then an aluminium plate under that.
?????

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Pentium-P4-HT-Hea ... 19c0411eaa


----------



## SketchUp Guru (23 Oct 2010)

My understanding is that a peltier is normally used as a cooling or heating device. It creates a cool surface and a warm surface when a current is applied. I don't know but will they work in reverse?


----------



## Nick69 (23 Oct 2010)

A quick google shows a Thermoelectric version too, still got to look some more though


----------



## Shrubby (24 Oct 2010)

Nick
My dad has old cpu fans for both of his wood burning stoves,
Hidden discretely in the fireplace they make an enormous difference, experiment with the positiom for best effect - nothing complex needed 
Matt


----------



## wobblycogs (27 Oct 2010)

Peltier type devices work both ways but they are very inefficient, just about enough to power a fan. A good heat sink is a must. It's called the Seebeck effect btw.


----------



## glenn (13 Sep 2011)

You can also get a stirling powered stove fan here

Just type vulcan fan into google.

Although clearly it is going to be hard to make one like that yourself ! Just thought it would be of interest as it works in a different way.


----------



## lurk (15 May 2012)

Appreciate this is an old thread now, ...some of my projects take time to complete - I made my own Stove Top Fan as I didn't want to spend more than £50 - you can find it on Youtube if you search for "My ecofan DIY " - the basics are simple enough, just select the right parts from the start. But you should know that not all peltiers are the same. The solder used in some is low temp stuff as the modules are coolers for in car fridges and the like - these are designed to be supplied with 12v to generate a hot & cold side. They fail if the stove top gets above 150 degrees - which most do - trust me on this.
I tried to make a Sterling type fan - a lot of hrs and now I have a nice paperweight - I need to improve my engineering skills


----------



## Phil Pascoe (15 May 2012)

Just buy an 8" or 10" electric fan, and set it up to blow past the stove - not so pretty, but cheaper and a lot more efficient.


----------

