Murphy's Law (part 2)

To Paraphrase "Letters to Cleo"
Just livin' on a Sunday Mornin'
Get my toast and tea and I'm warmin'
I just thought I'd think about... Getting my butt outside and start working on my truck...

No watchin' the enthusiast shows on TV today. My enthusiasm's just about spent anyway after yesterday.

After fiddling with the "universal" mounting brackets for the fan for about an hour and a half, I finally settle on a configuration that I think might work. The trick is to get the "L" brackets hooked under the radiator without taking the radiator out of the truck. Wouldn't you know it, I'm in luck, I can wedge them in there quite simply. Maybe Murphy will leave me alone today.

I spend another hour drilling the bottom of the fan to bolt from the inside (don't worry, it's made to do it that way, honest). Another 15 minutes and it's bolted on. Time to wire this thing up and get it going.

The instructions were unbelievably clear on the wiring details. It only took me about 30 minutes to get it all together. Final step, plug in the fuse and warm up the truck. Nice!

According to the directions, I set the thermostat to the highest setting and let the truck warm up to where I would like the fan to turn on. I get into the cab and turn her over. Crank up the AC to get the motor warmed up quicker. 150... 160... 170... 180... Perfect, let's turn down the thermostat until the fan turns on.

Very slowly, I start turning the control knob on the thermostat to the left. Slowly now... Slowly... I'm about halfway down now... I have to be close to 180 degrees soon, don't I? Turn some more. Nothing is happening. I now have the thermostat on the lowest setting, and nothing. Not a peep from the fan.

Ok, let's retrace my steps... Ground to fan, ok... Ground to battery, ok... Red positive wire to fan... Looks good, red positive to battery... Looks good too. Positive wire to thermostat... That's just fine. The last thing to check (why didn't I check it first??) is the fuse. Hmm... It's blown. That's odd, you'd think it at least come on for a second before it blew the fuse.

I pull the fuse out and set the thermostat to where I think it might be on. Actually, now I notice that I can hear a click on the thermostat when it gets to the right temperature. Very good, at least I know that part is working. I stick the new fuse in and immediately it pops.

Time to go back and double check the wiring. Hmm... The positive battery terminal is a little corroded, I'll try another connection that's hot. Ok, new fuse time! Pop! Same thing.

I take out my faithful volt meter. I check all the grounds, circuits, and make sure I have the right voltage everywhere. All is well. New fuse... POP! This is getting frustrating.

The morning is flying by and it's getting to be about time for lunch. I'll get this thing going after lunch and still have an hour or two before dinner to work on my almost completely remodeled bathroom. (Anyone care to wager if I ever do finish the bathroom?)

After lunch I pull every last inch of wire that I just ran around the engine bay and start from scratch. A run to the auto parts store across the street, then to Sears Hardware, then to the other parts store to collect all the new connectors I need along with more fuses (I'd better stock up). You just had to know I wouldn't find everything I needed in one store.

I spend 30 minutes driving around like a nut, then another 30 minutes re-wiring the entire thing. It's gonna work now. Stick in fuse... POP!!!

It's right about now when the "Ralphie" in me starts spewing more fudge. In addition, I'm throwing tools, and kicking things. Forget about breaking anything in the car, I'm probably going to break a toe.

What the frig! I come inside the house and log on to Flex-a-lite's web site. Seems at some point they had an issue with a fuse holder that they supplied with some of their fans. This is a new model, so I don't think that could be the issue, but it is on just about every page of their site. I'll try another one just to be safe. This is the onset of another run to both parts stores.

Again, more cutting and stripping an fastening of wires. Go for another fuse... Pop! AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

Unhook the fan... Check wires inside... All is fine. Pop in fuse... Hey, whataya know, it works!! Crank the fan down nice and tight, turn it back on, pop goes the fuse...

Oh... Wait a sec...

Think for a minute... Pop goes the lightbulb in my head. (At least it wasn't another fuse). The back of the fan motor is touching the radiator. That's what's causing the fuse to break.

After spending another 10 minutes moving and re-tightening the fan, I crank it up again and all is good. I take the truck out for a test spin and get her nice and warm. Everything is looking just great! The needle on my truck's temp gauge is pegged about 195 degrees... Right where it should be. (Although now I'm thinking it's a good idea to put in a 180 degree thermostat).

Awesome, I'm now a happy camper. It's time for dinner now... Guess I'm not getting to the bathroom work. Everything is good... Well, sort of...

It's a week and a half since I put the fan in and the fuse still goes every now and then. I think the fan might be moving around just enough on occasion to get some static built up and short out with the radiator. For now, I'll keep enough fuses in the glove box to get me through until I have time to get it perfect, but all-in-all it's working well.

So, you see, Murphy's law gets me just about every time I embark on a weekend project. Shoot, if you have a project that you think I could help you out with, you'd better think twice. It's contagious... Or at least it will be as long as I'm helping. Steer clear of me and Murphy.

And for those of you who were betting, no, the bathroom still isn't finished.