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Old 10-16-2014, 05:14 PM   #21
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

My SMB is new to me, a '99 Ford so I guess my Starcool is a 98? Anyway, a month ago on a shakedown trip I noticed my fan below the driver door was not on while plugged to shore power. The compressor seems to be working. The Starcool unit in the back was working great while going down the road. When my bro-in-law and I dug into the issue we found the 20amp fuse blown, pretty much the description you guys have in this post.

But, we did get it working and everyone was happy. The fan below the driver door came on, etc.

So today I get my rig set up at the campsite. I plug in to shore power. Turn on all appropriate breakers. Turn on AC. I see the compressor on the drivers side come and a do its little "jiggle". The fan under the driver door doesn't come on. I pull the fuse, blown. Replace fuse. Fan outside comes on, yay! Air cold.

Go to beach, come back. Underside fan not moving, air inside is warm. I find this post. The underside fan does not spin freely by hand. (But how did it come on earlier?)

Then I went to the front grill, the one fan I can see (I thought there should be 2 but can only see one) and that fan not only won't spin but the blue little wire to it is cut(?).

So, I'm not sure what to do next...

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Old 10-16-2014, 08:23 PM   #22
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

That is a common failure of a motor. You can reach in and spin the blade and it will start up and run. The motor needs to be replaced. As for the cut wire on the front, who knows. Maybe that motor is also bad and the PO cut it??? Those fans are easy to find according to my A/C mechanic.

The problem with the fan under the driver seat is it's common for rocks and debris to stop the fan from turning and the motor cooks. It might run several times but sooner or later it will stop needing another push start.
I've got into a habit of making sure the blades are clear before plugging into shore power and starting the SC. It's a PITA but the thing seems to suck up debris. It's also a good idea to spray out the fins but be careful not to use too much water pressure.
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Old 10-17-2014, 05:22 AM   #23
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

Yeah, putting the fan directly behind the front wheel was not one of SMB's brighter ideas.
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Old 10-17-2014, 09:43 AM   #24
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

Quote:
Originally Posted by BrianW
Yeah, putting the fan directly behind the front wheel was not one of SMB's brighter ideas.
I had a problem with gravel getting stuck in my fan box. I made a mudflap type of thing out of Kydex that keeps the gravel from dropping onto the condenser from the top of the wheel well. Should have made it a little longer on the bottom, but it's way better that what was there before. (Which was nothing at all.)

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Old 10-17-2014, 02:08 PM   #25
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

Well, we're enjoying some beautiful camping weather and this morning my son and I did some more testing. I had him inside with a walkie talkie so I could stop running back and forth.

I had him turn the AC on, the condenser jiggle would start, and then in a few moments at about the time I expected the fan to start up (which I had sprayed out and could turn with a screw driver pushing on the blades one at a time), I saw the faintest puffs of smoke. It's a 15 yr old system and the PO said they lived off a dirt road. So, I'm thinking new fan motor time.

Man, that unit under the driver door is tight up in there. The plastic housing is squeezed in by the van body. It's not readily clear to me that I can just pop the fan off.

Guess I'll be searching some other threads.

No problem. The temps are awesome and this is the maiden shake down camp trip in our new to us SMB! We're loving it! Pics and intro once we get back home...
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Old 10-17-2014, 05:25 PM   #26
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

So he says.........so he says. Ultralite is a good friend of mine. I envy his Starcool problems.

He's been pretty busy, so I'll cut him some slack, but he's had this rig for 2 or 3 months and JUST NOW took it out!!!! Anyway, like I said, I'll cut him some slack.

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Old 10-17-2014, 06:50 PM   #27
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

On my 98 Starcool the fan underneath is mounted in a shroud. You have to remove the shroud to replace the fan. In my case one of the screw heads had been stripped out so bad at one point that I had to grind off the head. I also had a big crack in the shroud that I fixed with epoxy. It was WAY more work to replace that than I had planned.
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Old 04-30-2015, 10:57 AM   #28
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

With summer around the corner I'd like to get the 110 side of the starcool operating properly. Question for those that have replaced the front fan,
does the bumper, grill need to be removed? It looks like there might just be enough room to fit (carefully) a hand along side of the fan and unbolt it. It is my belief that this is what is causing the fuse to blow as the fan is seized. I am going to attempt to disconnect as suggested and run the system for a short period and see if the fuse continues to blow.

Thanks!
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Old 04-30-2015, 11:52 AM   #29
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Re: 98 Starcool blowing fuse

I don't recall having to pull the bumper when I did my front fan (5.4 engine). I did have to remove my front receiver hitch, though, as that was in the way.
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