blower fuse fried!
03-29-2009, 04:07 AM
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
blower fuse fried!
I had my fresh air blower fuse 16 "fuse" today; not just "fuse" but burnt out.The fuse holder is toast, melted so a new fuse cannot be fitted.
Q. Is it possable to change individual fuse carrier blocks (five fuses) or do I have to replace the whole assembly?
Q. If no/yes to the above, should I remove the wiring for the blower and fit an individual fuse for this consumer?
Chris.
Q. Is it possable to change individual fuse carrier blocks (five fuses) or do I have to replace the whole assembly?
Q. If no/yes to the above, should I remove the wiring for the blower and fit an individual fuse for this consumer?
Chris.
03-29-2009, 07:55 AM
#2
Racer
Chris, you need to take out the complete block, not just one element for one fuse. This is the decent fix. The dirty one is bypass the fuse panel and make a seperate in-line fuse. Any idea why it fried? The fresh air blower is not such a big load normally. Maybe it is stuck or turns with a lot of resistance?
03-29-2009, 09:35 AM
#3
Instructor
Thread Starter
Theo, not sure of the cause just yet, I did switch off the a/c before starting the car, I had just made a short trip before with a/c and blower working well but prior to that the car has not been used for a few weeks.Maybe she is feeling neglected.
When you say block do you mean block of 5 or the whole shooting match?
Chris
When you say block do you mean block of 5 or the whole shooting match?
Chris
03-29-2009, 10:30 AM
#4
Rennlist Member
The block of 5 can be replaced, but the individual melted fuse slot can also be repaired, depending on how bad it is melted. I just repaired mine with a similar problem from a meltdown with a foglight fuse. (see pic below of melted slot and after repair) You still need the spare block, to replace the "face plate" of the bad block. You also need to make sure the meltdown did not affect the wall of plastic that separates the copper blades that the fuses plug into, otherwise you'll get a real bad short, and maybe a fire. If the wall is shot, then the 5 block needs to be replaced entirely. I found the thought of replacing the 5 block daunting, however, which when you see the back of the board you'll understand why (see pic below). Thus, with the internal integrity of the block still good on mine, I just cleaned it up well, swapped out the copper blades in side the bad spot with fresh ones from the donor board, and put the new face plate on it.
I had an extra ce panel that was correct for my car, which I used as a donor board for the parts. I really played around with that donor board first, in order to learn how it goes together and how it comes apart - you don't want to experiment on your actual board!
If you need parts, contact Alan - IIRC he has them and will sell them at a reasonable price.
I had an extra ce panel that was correct for my car, which I used as a donor board for the parts. I really played around with that donor board first, in order to learn how it goes together and how it comes apart - you don't want to experiment on your actual board!
If you need parts, contact Alan - IIRC he has them and will sell them at a reasonable price.
03-29-2009, 08:39 PM
#6
Electron Wrangler
Lifetime Rennlist
Member
Lifetime Rennlist
Member
Please note that not all the fuse blocks are functionally the same. Internally some have links between pins on the input side. Different years are also configured differently - so even the correctly numbered block from the wrong year may be incompatible.
Obviously the correct year and correctly numbered block will be compatible. The blocks can be adapted to any configuration if you have the appropriate spare parts (e.g. from a complete panel).
I should also not that its hard to take panels apart without damaging parts. They were not designed for dissassembly and old part get brittle.
Practice on something other than the part you really want...
I have taken apart many panels and about 20% of parts get damaged whatever you do (sometimes still marginally usable...).
I have had panels with 100% success and some with 50% - depends a lot on condition. I have made special tools for dissassembly - my success rate before making these was even lower.
BTW - the cause of this was probably nothing to do with the blower - and all to do with the fuse.
Its possible a cheap fuse was installed or that the fuseholder was damaged or that the fuseholder got corroded (wet). It is highly likely that a new fuse block (and high quality fuse) will fix this permamently.
MESSAGE - change all the fuses for high quality ones (name brands) Bussman/Littlefuse etc. No name chinese brands are really cheap - and there is a reason... don't use them...
When you pull the fuses - check to see if any exhibit any corrosion or blackening if so those fuse block may be candidates to change also (preventatively). In this case if the plastic body is still good - you can attempt to change just the offending fuseholder/terminal inside...
Alan
Obviously the correct year and correctly numbered block will be compatible. The blocks can be adapted to any configuration if you have the appropriate spare parts (e.g. from a complete panel).
I should also not that its hard to take panels apart without damaging parts. They were not designed for dissassembly and old part get brittle.
Practice on something other than the part you really want...
I have taken apart many panels and about 20% of parts get damaged whatever you do (sometimes still marginally usable...).
I have had panels with 100% success and some with 50% - depends a lot on condition. I have made special tools for dissassembly - my success rate before making these was even lower.
BTW - the cause of this was probably nothing to do with the blower - and all to do with the fuse.
Its possible a cheap fuse was installed or that the fuseholder was damaged or that the fuseholder got corroded (wet). It is highly likely that a new fuse block (and high quality fuse) will fix this permamently.
MESSAGE - change all the fuses for high quality ones (name brands) Bussman/Littlefuse etc. No name chinese brands are really cheap - and there is a reason... don't use them...
When you pull the fuses - check to see if any exhibit any corrosion or blackening if so those fuse block may be candidates to change also (preventatively). In this case if the plastic body is still good - you can attempt to change just the offending fuseholder/terminal inside...
Alan
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08-03-2009, 01:06 PM
#8
Electron Wrangler
Lifetime Rennlist
Member
Lifetime Rennlist
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Guys if this is still an ongoing issue for one or both of you let me know. I actually have parts from spare panels (all parts - spare terminals & spare fuse blocks). At least half the battle is getting them out without damage.
First time through you only have an approx 50% chance of getting what you want removed without damage - it also possible (though rare) to damage your panel while removing the damaged parts.
Alan
First time through you only have an approx 50% chance of getting what you want removed without damage - it also possible (though rare) to damage your panel while removing the damaged parts.
Alan
