Tillotson Knives Posted November 27, 2016 Share Posted November 27, 2016 Im building a new forge and had planned on following indian georges design. It uses a 100cfm blower , I waited so long to complete it that the blower isnt available anywhere online. Can I use a blower thats mounted on my table and run hose to inlet ? Or if anyone has a source for a cheap 100cfm blower let me know. Thanks ! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou L Posted November 28, 2016 Share Posted November 28, 2016 Dave, unfortunately I don't know the requirements of a fan for a propane forge. I'm not sure if CFM's or static pressure are most important (though I'm guessing pure CFMs are best). I've been hunting for my dream blower for a while now for a side blast forge with the requirements of it being relatively cheap, having high static pressure and having decent CFMs. There are so many options out there that it would be too expensive to just try one out and hope. So far I have learned: Axial fans (traditional fan blades) are right out. Centrifugal fans have higher pressure and consistent flow and are desireable. However, different bearing and motor types can matter. Single speed fans are fine because we control the flow with gates. However, many people online in a number of specialties warn against using shaded pole motors for continuous use and generally expect them to not last long. There are all sorts of options for centrifugal fans from wood stove blowers, furnace draft inducers, bounce house blowers, etc.... Most I find online are much higher CFM than I want and are a bit expensive. There are 12v DC options as well that are apparently good if you have the transformer to power them (I think a model train controller will power them if rated high enough and there are rheostats designed to speed control them as well). Mixed flow fans are another option as quiet, relatively high static pressure options. They can be small (pvc boating types) or larger (used for hydroponics and grow houses). It appears that the larger ones are used by many for illegal reasons based upon the comments in the questions and reviews. A lot of people want them delivered in unlabeled packaging! Look up iPower fans for an example. These fans claim to be centrifugal but I'm almost certain they are really mixed flow fans because the air does not exit radially from the fan. In the end, all the cheap options seem like they won't work well or last long. Right now I'm waiting on some HVAC people I know to find me a used furnace blower. They are not reusable and get trashed with the old furnace. There are also cheap, plastic bounce house blowers rated 1/4 or 1/5 HP but they never supply CFM ratings. If noise isn't a concern for you then you will have more options but I've been refusing anything over 60 decibels. Try a search on Amazon for "centrifugal blower". You will be surprised at the options you will see. It is a good place to go at least to see options. Good luck, Lou Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 28, 2016 Share Posted November 28, 2016 Furnace Draft Inducers: the ultra efficient house heating furnaces generally use a draft inducer as they are trying to remove all the heat that would drive a draft up a chimney. When such furnaces get replaced it's generally not for that draft inducer fan. Talk with folks at your local HVAC company and see if they have a bonepile you could get one from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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