Make Your Own Reliable 12v Cooler

Had a few colemans'. The cooler box is satisfactory, but the fans in them are krapola. The recent models of these coolers have 2 fans; 1 (on top) outside, & 1 inside.
I found that the outter fan craps out within 3 wks - 2 months.
I removed the krapped out fan, brought it to radio shack & found a PC tower cooling fan that was rated a few 10's less amps than the junk fan from the coleman. It was also rated for 12 volts. This fan was 5" inch x 5"inch, & approx 2"inch thick. Made of very heavy steel. This puppy had some weight to it. (Note: There were also fans that were close to the same size as the original krap fan, but none of them operated close to matching the amp & volt range needed).
Because the new replacement fan is so much larger than the original, retro fitting is required.

To the best of my memory, here are the steps I took:

1) Take the plastic cover that housed the junk fan, & remove the plastic where it was seated. (Please do not cut the vent fins!, just trim out the square area).
You also may need to remove the (plastic) where the 4 original cover screws go through that held the vent cover in place.

2) Lay the new fan flat down in the vent cover. Once it lays flat w/ no more plastic trimming needed; Align the fan so that the center of the fan is in the center of the cover's finns. Using the 4 holes in each of the corners of the fan as a guide, drill 4 holes into the vent cover with a 3/8 inch drill bit.

3) Re connect the 2 electric wires. Plug in 12v DC socket. Note the direction fan is blowing air. Be sure the air is being sucked in through the vent in plastic lid & will blow air onto cooling fins. When air flow is confirmed in correct direction, unplug from power source.

4) Secure fan in vent cover w/
A) 2 1/2 in long x 3/8 inch diameter bolts (note: your fan may be different thickness that what I used, so be sure your bolts are be long enough).
B) 4 nuts (that will fit onto to bolts)
C) 8 washers
Ideally the bolt heads should be on top of the vent cover w/ nuts on bottom of the fan. (Your fan is now secured in the vent cover)

5) Place the vent cover back on top of cooler.
You'll probably find that the fan sits directly on top of the cooling fins & hinders the vent cover from seating in top of the slot it normally seats & seals in (This is ok, as we'll be using weather stripping to fill that gap & raise the fan off of the cooling fins).

6) Using 1/2" inch weather stripping, cut 4 pieces to length to fit along the sides of the slot where the cover used to seat. Once you have it cut to fit. Place the adhesive side of the stripping down in the slot. Also; be sure the stripping is butted up against the sides of the slot.

7) Set the vent cover back in place on top of the cooler. The bottom of the vent cover should now be making contact w/ the stripping & fan no long resting on top of the cooling fins. (You may or may not need to add another layer of stripping to achieve this.)

8 ) Use 3 1/2" inch long(or was it 3 3/4" inch, .. can't recall which I used) wood screws (4 pcs) to to secure the vent cover in place. The vent cover should be snugged into the weather stripping, but not jammed into it. Also be sure that the fan is not making contact w/ the finns, as the running fan will heat up the finns if contact is made. All you need is an 1/8" inch gap between them.
Note: I don't recall the exact placement of the woodscrews, but I do recall this: Make sure that you don't screw into the wiring for the fan that operates inside the cooler. I recall that one side of the finn cover was sloped. On that side I think I placed the screws approx 2-3 inches back from where the finns end, & on ther non sloped side 5-6 inches.
Also pre drill holes in the vent cover, then (w/ a screw gun) drive the woodscrews through those hole & straight down into the top of the cooler (don't predrill cooler,...drive the pointed woodscrews into the cooler directly).

9) Plug cooler to power & frequently touch the power cord to be sure that it doesn't get too hot for the 1st few hours. (Too hot = danger)

Congratulations! you now have a cooler that you won't have to thinks twice about for years to come, & when that day comes, it's a simple fan replacement.

Additional Info: My fan worked so well, that the other fan inside the cooler couldn't handle it & froze up. I simply removed it (didn't need it). As long as the cooler is standing upright, the cold air drops. I did leave the cooler on the side for a while a noticed that the food was cold by the fins & not so cold on the other end, so you definitely want to keep the cooler upright when that inner fan isn't working.
If you decide to go all out & replace the inner fan too, you'll need to keep in mind the amp difference (if any) in the top fan you use. If the new top fan pulls 3/10ths of an amp more than original fan, & the new fan you're putting in the bottom also draws 3/10ths more amps, you'll be pulling 3/8ths of an amp more than stock. Not sure 100% but this may be a potential fire hazard.


Additional Info: If you do this modification I highly recommend a Radio Shack replacement fan. Quality & most ppl that work there are college educated & will be of significant importance to you. Especially if you lack a basic understanding of electricity.

Hope this Helps

 

Apparently you have the older Coleman cooler which sports a motor w/ a shaft that carries 2 fans on it (1 fan under the fin cover & the other inside the cooler) as the shaft runs directly through the top of the cooler. I never owned one, However from what I've heard, these shaft type motors are hands down the best for reliability & longevity. Unlike the newer models, you can purchase replacement motors for under $30 bucks.
When you replace that motor, I'd advise keeping a small can of 3 in1 oil on hand. After running it for approx 3 months, remove the vent cover, blow out dust w/ air hose, & apply a couple of drops of 3 in 1 oil on the motor bearing (Do this every month). I spoke w/ an old guy on the verge of retirement & learned this from him. He claims he has the original motor in a cooler that's 6 or 7 years old, & the motor still runs like new.
If you should decide to part ways w/ your old shaft type cooler, please let me be the 1st to know.

Hope this helps

 

Hey 25(2)+2, What model coleman cooler do you have? (Model#5615, #5232, #5640, #5641, or #5642 ?) I have a motor sitting right here in front of me, brand new in unopened package that will fit these models. Originally I bought it for the new cooler I had (in 2008) w/o knowing it wouldn't fit. Then to boot, when I learned that replacement fans weren't available for the newer model coolers, that's when I got creative & applied the method used in this thread's original post to make it happen.
Anyway; you can have it for say, ...... $12 bucks sound ok? Postage, handling, & packaging included, ... & as they say; "shipped right to your door". PM me if you're interested.