pusher or puller??

by Cdub74 Fri Nov 26, 2010 11:55 am

hey guys need some help....My 454 just has a engine fan, which is not enough. It gets really hot sitting in traffic/parades. I want a good fan to put on the radiator. Whats the best to do a pusher or a puller???

by IndyG3 Fri Nov 26, 2010 12:46 pm

I think that a pusher fan is better.

by BlackChevelleSS Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:05 pm

Ive heard the opposite a puller is better...ive got both on my cars one small one pullng and one small one pushing on the other side

by Cdub74 Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:12 pm

damn....well i might just say the hell with it and just do the both. haha

by The Dude Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:15 pm

A pusher is only 80% as effective as a puller. Here's some info off of the Perma-Cool website:
http://www.perma-cool.com/faq/efans.html

Pushers are usually used where space is too tight for a puller fan. Thankfully we don't have that problem. Think of it this way, if you throw a fan on the front of the radiator to push air through it, isn't that the same as running down the highway without a fan? A puller fan will actually "pull" the heat out of the radiator as the fan has nowhere to pull air from except through the passages in the radiator.

Another thing to think about if your cooling issues aren't cured with an electric fan is to switch to a lower temp thermostat, an aluminum water pump, an aluminum radiator or possibly a larger stock radiator with more cores. Then again, a combination of all of them would give maximum cooling & I would at least do the T-stat first before going through the hassle of an E-fan.

How fresh is the antifreeze & how does the mixture look? This could very well be the source of your problem too. Cooling problems in older cars are usually cheap/easy to track down.

BTW, I just realized that you two have nearly identical cars. Freaky.

by Cdub74 Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:21 pm

Thats a huge help Rago, thanks. I will be checking all that this weekend. Oh, and IndyG3.... our cars are very identical looking. scratch

by Cdub74 Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:24 pm

IndyG3....I love the front end...droooool Thumbs up

by Limey SE Fri Nov 26, 2010 3:28 pm

everyone I know has a Puller and in some cases of high HP run two pullers ....

GO WITH A PULLER YOU WONT BE DISAPPOINTED

by oldstofty Fri Nov 26, 2010 7:07 pm

gotta pusher on mine but still sits about 200, so im swapin it, bbo run hotter than hell anyways, probably wont help me much. im also cappin off the radiator bypass. hopefully thats good for a few degrees

by Cdub74 Sat Nov 27, 2010 8:39 am

PULLER IT IS!

by McCauley5983 Sat Nov 27, 2010 9:25 pm

is the water pump going out on it

by pila Sat Nov 27, 2010 10:13 pm

Not to muddy the water here, but I had a '67 Bonneville hardtop in the 80s, that ran hot in traffic, like over 200 degrees. It had an original equipment 4-blade fan. At the local auto parts store I bought a 7 blade fan and clutch. The temp went down 20 degrees. I had installed a temp gauge when I rebuilt the 400 engine, but until that time, didn't know what temp it ran at. (temp light) And I had the radiator cleaned when the engine was out, just as a precaution. So I believe in a big fan and clutch. Haven't ever used or had to use an electric fan yet. An aluminum radiator would likely have made it run cooler with the original fan.

by IndyG3 Sun Nov 28, 2010 12:30 am

Cdub74 wrote:Oh, and IndyG3.... our cars are very identical looking.

That's weird...it's like yours is the classier version of mine!

EDIT: I'd go ahead and do what these guys are saying and get a puller fan.

by Bill's 74 Sun Nov 28, 2010 1:13 am

pila wrote:Not to muddy the water here, but I had a '67 Bonneville hardtop in the 80s, that ran hot in traffic, like over 200 degrees. It had an original equipment 4-blade fan. At the local auto parts store I bought a 7 blade fan and clutch. The temp went down 20 degrees. I had installed a temp gauge when I rebuilt the 400 engine, but until that time, didn't know what temp it ran at. (temp light) And I had the radiator cleaned when the engine was out, just as a precaution. So I believe in a big fan and clutch. Haven't ever used or had to use an electric fan yet. An aluminum radiator would likely have made it run cooler with the original fan.

I agree.

The proper mech. fan will move more air than an electric. Be sure the mech. fan is the correct size, in the correct location. A shroud will also help.

Bill

by Limey SE Sun Nov 28, 2010 1:42 am

[quote="Bill's 74"]

pila wrote:I agree.The proper mech. fan will move more air than an electric. Be sure the mech. fan is the correct size, in the correct location. A shroud will also help. Bill

I also agree on the mechanical UNLESS you wanna free up some ponies like I did with switching to the electric fan and for added benefit I added alum radiator

by Bill's 74 Sun Nov 28, 2010 9:05 am

Yes, you can free up some power, but if you can't keep the car cool...

Maybe use a small mech. fan on a clutch, and use elec. (or two) to help?

Bill

by pila Sun Nov 28, 2010 10:55 am

I'm inclined to think some power would be freed up with electric, but the alternator will drag more too, in supplying that power, so it's hard to say just how much is gained. Maybe it's a matter of efficiency differences between the engine driven fan and the electric.(?)

No free lunch there?

by Bill's 74 Sun Nov 28, 2010 11:14 am

Valid point.

I would think that with the fan only running when needed it could be off durning power needs.

Bill

by Cdub74 Mon Nov 29, 2010 8:56 am

I have a 5 blade mech on it with a shroud and a spacer (to bring it closer to the radiator) water pump is fine, but it runs at 200 in traffic. More HP would be great. So ill get a nice electric fan, take off my mech, and see what happens. If she doesnt hit past 200 in traffic then im happy.

by Bill's 74 Mon Nov 29, 2010 9:24 am

Cdub74 wrote:I have a 5 blade mech on it with a shroud and a spacer (to bring it closer to the radiator) water pump is fine, but it runs at 200 in traffic. More HP would be great. So ill get a nice electric fan, take off my mech, and see what happens. If she doesnt hit past 200 in traffic then im happy.

As mentioned by Pila, and I agree; go with a 7 blade. I have a friend that has a 67 Buick V8. It had the stock fan with shroud and would run WELL over 200 in traffic so her son was going to convert it to electric, or add one. They asked my advice and I told them to go with a 7 blade (did not belive me at first but did try it). With NO other changes, it now stays under 200 ALL the time.

Bill

by The Dude Mon Nov 29, 2010 10:44 am

Cdub, are you running a flex fan? I'd almost be willing to bet some of your problem lies there if so. Try a thermal clutch fan with 7 blades as mentioned by others & your problem could very well go away. I'd still drop in a lower temp thermostat to help out though. What's $10 & 5 minutes if it could save you some hassle in the long run?

by Cdub74 Mon Nov 29, 2010 11:57 am

hummm....this is what I have it is a flex fan pusher or puller?? Flex_f10

but 5 blades, ill try your idea Rago because the electric I was going to get is $250!

by Cdub74 Mon Nov 29, 2010 12:00 pm

Ive been looing at thermal clutch fans.....and they look weird and huge!

by The Dude Mon Nov 29, 2010 12:33 pm

Thermal clutches might look big, but they only come on when the engine temp rises. Other than that they are free spinning & don't take up any power. The flex fan is one of those "can of worms" debates. Some like them, some think they aren't sufficient enough to cool, some feel they rob horsepower. I'll just leave it at that.

by Bill's 74 Mon Nov 29, 2010 12:53 pm

IMHO: A flex fan (with the correct number of blades) dollar for dollar will out perform any electric fan.

Bill

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