Eco Fan

[Dr Bob]

Just to continue the theme of Ecofans not working. Reading this thread there are loads of non believers and I can understand why. Not sure if anyone here goes on Youtube and looks at the various video blogs but take a look at David doing his blog at:

His ecofan is really going great guns! At that speed it will be as much use as a chocolate teapot. Looking at some of his other videos, it is the same. Interestingly, some of the other vloggers on youtube have similar speed ecofans. These wouldnt even tell you when the fuel was too low!

[mrsmelly]

Kinel !! who is he!! now I know why I never look at Vloggers/Bloggers  seems an amiable chap but I am guessing hes a noob trying to impart his vast experience 

[roland elsdon]

Wots a vlogger on u tub am I missing something, I appreciate I'm old and spend half my life in the back end of nowhere , down under, and the rest of it avoiding human contact by  sitting on the boat pretending it's 1963 and canal carrying has just ended, but I didn't think I was that out of it. Mind you I only bought a smart phone last year and it's not that smart, wont stop me using it as a hammer or to level the table when we both sit on the same side of the boat. Maybe us only being on 2g ( buffering buffering) has its uses, or I might have to watch a spotty adolescent telling me my boat could have a composting toilet, boating in London is fun ( it was in 1980) really fun with the national front threatening canal gypsy's , and the local anglers killing your pets, and that you need to run your engine 23.5 hours a day or your microwave won't work.

god that was a rant now then Eco fans. It's currently 42 degrees the campervan fridge is on permenantly and the battery as a consequence is dying( don't talk about charging regimes etc a new battery from super crap autos the only outlet in this one horse megatropolis is get this 180 of your uk pounds. 105 amp hour. Warrantied for 12 months or until the ink on the receipt fades to invisibility.( 11months) oh temp just dropped fridge just switched off for 40 seconds... So I'm going to import an Eco fan (about 2 million of your uk pounds ) put it on top of the fridge and use the huge gale to keep the food cool.

at the same time when I get back to 1936 otherwise known as home, I'm going to clean the fire out, and then hand turn the Eco fan. After I have weighed the coal that will have been produced this will irrevocably prove that coal can be saved and hence by default the planet saved by Eco fans.

im now going to go and find somewhere cool to sit ( fridge went on and off three times while I wrote last paragraph I can't sleep it's by my head...) they call it going tropo 

[LadyG]

1 hour ago, mrsmelly said:

Kinel !! who is he!! now I know why I never look at Vloggers/Bloggers  seems an amiable chap but I am guessing hes a noob trying to impart his vast experience 

Nope: he does not profess to be an boating expert, as he in fact he re-iterates on here had you listened to what he was saying.

He is a professional news reporter/broadcaster and less nooby than some around here I could mention  .

Not being a very practical chap, he was pretty pleased with the early vlog on putting up coat hooks, two years later he changed his alternator [in his own way], that was a bridge too far perhaps, but it works, though he did say he was prepared to buy a second replacement if he boogerd the first one  

He writes for Canal Boat too, so he gets paid for his professional journalistic skills, is that your defnition of a noob?

Btw, David uses CWDF, but will be too polite to respond to you post.

Edited January 20, 2018 by LadyG

[LadyG]

20 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

Wots a vlogger on u tub am I missing something, I appreciate I'm old and spend half my life in the back end of nowhere...........

Well vlog is a sort of thing lke a blog [an online diary], with added video [like a TV], which is published [free] on youtube.

Youtube is worldwide, and accessible from the internet, which is a kind of worldwide network of cables and wireless signals. 

The youtubers who put up narrowboat vlogs are great, they even meet in person, and you can watch them on here:

 

[Robbo]

1 hour ago, Dr Bob said:

Just to continue the theme of Ecofans not working. Reading this thread there are loads of non believers and I can understand why. Not sure if anyone here goes on Youtube and looks at the various video blogs but take a look at David doing his blog at

His ecofan is really going great guns! At that speed it will be as much use as a chocolate teapot. Looking at some of his other videos, it is the same. Interestingly, some of the other vloggers on youtube have similar speed ecofans. These wouldnt even tell you when the fuel was too low!

I wouldn’t take much from a video with a thing rotating.    Mine looks to go backwards when on camera.  All to do with frame rate and what not.

[Dr Bob]

31 minutes ago, Robbo said:

I wouldn’t take much from a video with a thing rotating.    Mine looks to go backwards when on camera.  All to do with frame rate and what not.

Ah, now your getting technical......is that the answer? In the old days you used to be able to get a timing light to set the ignition on the car, ie it flashed in sync with the revs and you moved the timing thingy to advance/retard the spark. Be interesting to get a variable light like that so you could measure the revs of a fan. David, if you're on, was your fan going round fast in that last video?

Talking of David, and LadyG's response, I fully agree with Lady G. We were new to the canals 10 months ago so it has been interesting to sit through all David's vlogs as he is a year ahead of the challenges we are facing....yes I admit we have watched every episode ....except the latest on changing an alternator. Any long time liveaboard might find it all a bit simple....but for us newbies it has been very informative....and now having some experience it is useful to go back to see where he has been so we know what to expect when we get there. Well done Crusing the Cut.

[Jim Riley]

11 minutes ago, Dr Bob said:

Ah, now your getting technical......is that the answer? In the old days you used to be able to get a timing light to set the ignition on the car, ie it flashed in sync with the revs and you moved the timing thingy to advance/retard the spark. Be interesting to get a variable light like that so you could measure the revs of a fan. David, if you're on, was your fan going round fast in that last video?

Talking of David, and LadyG's response, I fully agree with Lady G. We were new to the canals 10 months ago so it has been interesting to sit through all David's vlogs as he is a year ahead of the challenges we are facing....yes I admit we have watched every episode ....except the latest on changing an alternator. Any long time liveaboard might find it all a bit simple....but for us newbies it has been very informative....and now having some experience it is useful to go back to see where he has been so we know what to expect when we get there. Well done Crusing the Cut.

That flashing light thingy to measure revs would be a great invention, could call it a Strobe light. 

I like your thinking, a correct scientific explanation for the apparent slowness. It demonstrates the lengths unbelievers will go to to diss ecofans though. I bet they voted brexit too.

[mrsmelly]

1 hour ago, roland elsdon said:

Wots a vlogger on u tub am I missing something,  

In reply to your two part question. One you don't need to know what a Vlogger is  and two, you are categoricaly NOT missing anything 

[Robbo]

1 hour ago, Dr Bob said:

Ah, now your getting technical......is that the answer? In the old days you used to be able to get a timing light to set the ignition on the car, ie it flashed in sync with the revs and you moved the timing thingy to advance/retard the spark. Be interesting to get a variable light like that so you could measure the revs of a fan. David, if you're on, was your fan going round fast in that last video?

Talking of David, and LadyG's response, I fully agree with Lady G. We were new to the canals 10 months ago so it has been interesting to sit through all David's vlogs as he is a year ahead of the challenges we are facing....yes I admit we have watched every episode ....except the latest on changing an alternator. Any long time liveaboard might find it all a bit simple....but for us newbies it has been very informative....and now having some experience it is useful to go back to see where he has been so we know what to expect when we get there. Well done Crusing the Cut.

I’ve just downloaded a strobe light tach for iPhone.  I have a kettle on the stove at the moment but will return the fan and report back.

[Dr Bob]

7 minutes ago, Robbo said:

I’ve just downloaded a strobe light tach for iPhone.  I have a kettle on the stove at the moment but will return the fan and report back.

Oooooh. Thats interesting. We can all report on how fast our fans are going round. I'll have a look and see if android have one, otherwise I will go and find Mrs Bobs iphone.

[Robbo]

Have a measurement,  it’s spinning away at 565RPM 9.41Hz with a medium temperature fire,  don’t have an accurate thermometer so don’t know the temperature of the stove.  This is a sterling engine type fan tho.

[Robbo]

1 hour ago, Dr Bob said:

Talking of David, and LadyG's response, I fully agree with Lady G. We were new to the canals 10 months ago so it has been interesting to sit through all David's vlogs as he is a year ahead of the challenges we are facing....yes I admit we have watched every episode ....except the latest on changing an alternator. Any long time liveaboard might find it all a bit simple....but for us newbies it has been very informative....and now having some experience it is useful to go back to see where he has been so we know what to expect when we get there. Well done Crusing the Cut.

I like David’s vlog and some of the other vloggers, even though most of them are new to boating and i’ve been boating for a decade now they are still entertaining.  

[Dr Bob]

1 minute ago, Robbo said:

Have a measurement,  it’s spinning away at 565RPM 9.41Hz with a medium temperature fire,  don’t have an accurate thermometer so don’t know the temperature of the stove.  This is a sterling engine type fan tho.

Well done.

I found a couple of strobe fans for android - really hadnt thought of the phone being able to do it. We are back on the boat in a few days so will report back then. I bought a laser pointer IR temp meter a few weeks back so I can measure stove temperature and have a look at revs as temp increases. I am sure the duck will be interested.

[mrsmelly]

9 minutes ago, Robbo said:

Have a measurement,  it’s spinning away at 565RPM 9.41Hz with a medium temperature fire,  don’t have an accurate thermometer so don’t know the temperature of the stove.  This is a sterling engine type fan tho.

Please please do be careful. Getting close to the fan could result in very serious burns or the amputation of fingers or limbs such is their power!!

[Dr Bob]

1 minute ago, mrsmelly said:

Please please do be careful. Getting close to the fan could result in very serious burns or the amputation of fingers or limbs such is their power!!

Mrsmelly. Spot on. Very dangerous excercise which is why I want the duck involved.

Method: (and risk assessment)

- Sit in chair with beer.

- Aim thermometer at top of stove. Record reading.

- Aim phone (with strobe app running) at top of stove. Twiddle dial on phone till fan appears to stop.  Record fan speed.

- Drink some beer.

- Repeat 5 times

- Get Mrs Bob to turn fire up (dangerous bit)

- Refill beer glass

- Repeat above for 5 different fire settings

- Discuss results with duck and report back here.

That sounds quite a strenuous excercise. Key risk will be to avoid muscle injury to right arm. Mitigate by drinking enough fluids.

[mrsmelly]

10 minutes ago, Dr Bob said:

Mrsmelly. Spot on. Very dangerous excercise which is why I want the duck involved.

Method: (and risk assessment)

- Sit in chair with beer.

- Aim thermometer at top of stove. Record reading.

- Aim phone (with strobe app running) at top of stove. Twiddle dial on phone till fan appears to stop.  Record fan speed.

- Drink some beer.

- Repeat 5 times

- Get Mrs Bob to turn fire up (dangerous bit)

- Refill beer glass

- Repeat above for 5 different fire settings

- Discuss results with duck and report back here.

That sounds quite a strenuous excercise. Key risk will be to avoid muscle injury to right arm. Mitigate by drinking enough fluids.

Looks good to me. Just be careful that Mrs Bob doesn't nick any of your beer.

[tree monkey]

12 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Please please do be careful. Getting close to the fan could result in very serious burns or the amputation of fingers or limbs such is their power!!

Hmmmm one time being unable to overcome the hypnotic spinning of the fan i shoved my finger in the arc of the moving blades and I have to say, either the fan does bugger all or I have fingers of iron because nothing happened

[Dr Bob]

1 hour ago, tree monkey said:

Hmmmm one time being unable to overcome the hypnotic spinning of the fan i shoved my finger in the arc of the moving blades and I have to say, either the fan does bugger all or I have fingers of iron because nothing happened

Titanium perhaps?

[roland elsdon]

Well all these posts have given me pause for serious thought now that we are about to return from our transportation to Australia to provide education to the locals. Having pre empted our return and purchased what was described as ' the Rolls Royce' of modern narrowboats in the exchange and mart advert I am now wondering if it may actually be a little outmoded.

The Eco fan we purchased from midland swindlers is actually the most modern item on our vessel. My wife was tremendously excited when we purchased it proclaiming they have invented perpetual motion but not patented it. It's our chance to make our third million... I did wonder what had happened with the first two but time marches on. Anyway I digress ( unusual I know)  . I was shocked that after only 10 years in the antipodes she had forgotton so much about engineering and physics given her previous education and professional experience, but was reminded of a conversation I had had at work where I was told if you stay working for this organisation long enough your skills will be forgotten to the point where you end up with less intelligence than ... Better not say any more.

anyway ( please note this is not a sentence start only the uneducated start and media start a sentence anyway) to return to the subject. Our current vessel represents a massive upgrade on the origional and I felt it was an update , when explained to me. It has electric lighting and electric commencement, not an oil lamp and handle, there is even a special socket in the cabin to charge up the  Nokia, Other things are more familiar. Our heating and food are  still managed by the coal fire, the elsan is still in the engine room, and the water is still cunningly stored on the roof.

it does however have several features that I am a bit uncertain about and would like help from the forum to explain. The broker chappie glossed over somethings and I am concerned he may not have been entirely trust worthy.

firstly he claimed it had a battery management system. Reading the forum it appears to indicate ours is far in advance of most . Essentially the cunning thing tells you to go to sleep by slowly dimming the lights after the engine has been off for 4 hours. It's great, cannot see how it can be improved.

he claimed it had a composting toilet. I said it still looked like a racasan being a steel bucket, he said no. Leave it in the engine room full all winter while you are away and it would turn to compost. I haven't dare try it but am willing to. Certainly in the summer with the lister going all day if you leave it a while it does appear to be composty.

the diesel cooker is a bit dubious too. He suggested it was the latest thing for modern cruising and while it said Tilly and smelt of paraffin he was sure. Strangely I have noticed such devices in rural Australia brought over by ' settlers' so I suspect he may have pulled a fast one.

the broker said it has a bow thruster, but the energy saving version, and explained that just like my previous boats you could saunter to the bows and use it to push off the bottom, of the canal. How people now steer with them is beyond me, still I paid the extra.

lastly he claimed the foreward cabin, again a modern addition had central heating. He got out his tape measure and said look 27.5 feet central to the boat.

Having read the technical pages of the forum I am now bewildered and wonder if advantage has been taken, could someone please advise and explain where I should now be spending some of the millions we will make when we patent perpetual motion on enhancing the boat.

bit cooler today thinking better

 

 

 

[matty40s]

Well for all those wanting in at the bottom end of the market, Aldi have the 2 bladed version next Sunday for £25.99.

A couple of these should completely modernise and add to your boats forward velocity Roland.

[mrsmelly]

3 hours ago, roland elsdon said:

Well all these posts have given me pause for serious thought now that we are about to return from our transportation to Australia to provide education to the locals. Having pre empted our return and purchased what was described as ' the Rolls Royce' of modern narrowboats in the exchange and mart advert I am now wondering if it may actually be a little outmoded.

The Eco fan we purchased from midland swindlers is actually the most modern item on our vessel. My wife was tremendously excited when we purchased it proclaiming they have invented perpetual motion but not patented it. It's our chance to make our third million... I did wonder what had happened with the first two but time marches on. Anyway I digress ( unusual I know)  . I was shocked that after only 10 years in the antipodes she had forgotton so much about engineering and physics given her previous education and professional experience, but was reminded of a conversation I had had at work where I was told if you stay working for this organisation long enough your skills will be forgotten to the point where you end up with less intelligence than ... Better not say any more.

anyway ( please note this is not a sentence start only the uneducated start and media start a sentence anyway) to return to the subject. Our current vessel represents a massive upgrade on the origional and I felt it was an update , when explained to me. It has electric lighting and electric commencement, not an oil lamp and handle, there is even a special socket in the cabin to charge up the  Nokia, Other things are more familiar. Our heating and food are  still managed by the coal fire, the elsan is still in the engine room, and the water is still cunningly stored on the roof.

it does however have several features that I am a bit uncertain about and would like help from the forum to explain. The broker chappie glossed over somethings and I am concerned he may not have been entirely trust worthy.

firstly he claimed it had a battery management system. Reading the forum it appears to indicate ours is far in advance of most . Essentially the cunning thing tells you to go to sleep by slowly dimming the lights after the engine has been off for 4 hours. It's great, cannot see how it can be improved.

he claimed it had a composting toilet. I said it still looked like a racasan being a steel bucket, he said no. Leave it in the engine room full all winter while you are away and it would turn to compost. I haven't dare try it but am willing to. Certainly in the summer with the lister going all day if you leave it a while it does appear to be composty.

the diesel cooker is a bit dubious too. He suggested it was the latest thing for modern cruising and while it said Tilly and smelt of paraffin he was sure. Strangely I have noticed such devices in rural Australia brought over by ' settlers' so I suspect he may have pulled a fast one.

the broker said it has a bow thruster, but the energy saving version, and explained that just like my previous boats you could saunter to the bows and use it to push off the bottom, of the canal. How people now steer with them is beyond me, still I paid the extra.

lastly he claimed the foreward cabin, again a modern addition had central heating. He got out his tape measure and said look 27.5 feet central to the boat.

Having read the technical pages of the forum I am now bewildered and wonder if advantage has been taken, could someone please advise and explain where I should now be spending some of the millions we will make when we patent perpetual motion on enhancing the boat.

bit cooler today thinking better

 

 

 

Does the fan work?

[roland elsdon]

Does the fan work?

Don't know I'm in Australia cant feel it from here, could be a shrodingers Eco fan, only works when you aren't there..

Besides I hope the central heaters not lit.

[mrsmelly]

31 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

Does the fan work?

Don't know I'm in Australia cant feel it from here, could be a shrodingers Eco fan, only works when you aren't there..

Besides I hope the central heaters not lit.

Ahh that's it conclusive evidence then that they don't work!!  Such is the heat supposedly generated from an eco fan that if yours were working even with the heating off the blast of hot air from your boat would reach Australia and you would feel it. For years scientists thought " El Nino" was part of a regional climate when in reality it was due to the " El Eco fan " effect.

[Dr Bob]

7 hours ago, matty40s said:

Well for all those wanting in at the bottom end of the market, Aldi have the 2 bladed version next Sunday for £25.99.

A couple of these should completely modernise and add to your boats forward velocity Roland.

I wouldn't touch one of them with a barge pole. It may damage the pole and I need that for other things

Edited January 21, 2018 by Dr Bob