Fan Relay Socket Melting

[XCRN]

So I have an electric fan and as I was doing some wiring to the PDC, I noticed the fan relay socket was on the verge of melting. The worse side is from relay to fan, and the side from fuse to relay looks to have gotten hot too. I used a 30amp fuse, though I am not sure if that is the correct fuse, and 14ga wire that is roughly 12-14’ from relay to fan. The fan wiring from Flex-a-Lite is roughly 14ga as well. The socket was some cheap ebay socket, but was an OEM relay. The rest of the connectors in the system are fine. Is this a matter of a crappy relay socket, too high of fuse, too small of wire or something else?

 

[pagrey]

It might just be a poor connection to the relay. If the tabs on that socket are loose it may have arced and created some carbon crap that is causing high resistance and generating allot of heat. When you pull the relay how do the terminals look? Can you see marks where the terminals bite into them or is there burning? It's possible the terminals are just loose. You could pull them, clean everything up and crimp them down so they get a good bite on the relay.

 

[Akitadog]

The connector is not making good contact with the relay pins. I would clean with fine sandpaper and squeeze the connectors for tighter fit.
Had a similar issue with an electric fan in my 4 Runner.

 

[Blackjack]

I would step up to 12 gauge and use a relay plug like Truck-Lite 9185.

 

[machoheadgames]

I would use a fastronix waterproof relay/socket kit which is known to be really good quality and should hold up better. And I’d probably use 12AWG wire. If I remember right the wires on the 87, 87A and 30 terminals of the relay socket were all 12AWG as well.

Fastronix Relay Kit

 

[CharlesHS]

The 30A fuse with 14 ga wiring is way too much. The fuse to use with 14 ga wiring would be 15A, and if you step up to 12 ga wiring as posted above (good idea) the fuse to use would be 20A and IF you step up to 10 ga wiring you would use a 25A fuse.

 

[Artsifrtsi]

The 30A fuse with 14 ga wiring is way too much. The fuse to use with 14 ga wiring would be 15A, and if you step up to 12 ga wiring as posted above (good idea) the fuse to use would be 20A and IF you step up to 10 ga wiring you would use a 25A fuse.

His fan is only rated at an 11A draw, I'd go with the 12g wire, and a 15A fuse, then he'll never melt the wire, and it'll be good for a longer run like he is using.

 

[XCRN]

His fan is only rated at an 11A draw, I'd go with the 12g wire, and a 15A fuse, then he'll never melt the wire, and it'll be good for a longer run like he is using.

Yup, thats what I am working on now. Keeping the fuse location in the stock PDC but moving the new relay socket closer to the fan.

Glad I caught it though while running the power wire for the amp. Been a year since hitting the road with this.

 

[Jezza]

You probably just need to use a better quality relay base. I would also recommend one that is weather resistant. That melted base looks like cheap thermoplastic. Some of that stuff will distort at unreasonably low temperatures. Also, if water gets in the base it can cause corrosion between the pins causing resistance and heat.

 

[XCRN]

You probably just need to use a better quality relay base. I would also recommend one that is weather resistant. That melted base looks like cheap thermoplastic. Some of that stuff will distort at unreasonably low temperatures. Also, if water gets in the base it can cause corrosion between the pins causing resistance and heat.

This is what I got.