Installing a Maxxair Fan 7500K

[Rdsmith281]

Hello fellow campers.

I plan to install a Maxxair 7500K fan to replace one of my vent covers in the kitchen. I have a 2016 Sierra 371 REBH. The fan looks easy to install on the videos found on the internet. However, my question is... How do I determine if I have nearby 12 volt wiring?

I don't want to remove the current vent cover only to determine I don't have 12 volt wiring to complete the installation of the fan.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

[HONDAMAN174]

Any lights within 2-3 feet?


2014 Evo 2850 "Woodstock"
2011 Toyota Tundra "Clifford"

[Rdsmith281]

Any splicing involved?

[5picker]

Originally Posted by Rdsmith281

Any splicing involved?

Sometimes... and that is a big SOMETIMES... there just happens to be wiring at the vent location. Maybe not specifically for a fan but the wiring just happens to run through that area. But sometimes not.

In any case if there is a light within a couple of feet you can fish a wire to the light and run the fan from the light wiring.

Yes... it will involve splicing, fishing wires and quite possibly, curse words!

[raytwntrvlr]

I installed one in my TT in the front kitchen. There was a wiring run already there for me to splice into. I pulled the inside trim piece to check that before I ordered the fan.
The biggest hurdle was getting the existing vent out without destroying the roof.
It turned out to be a pretty tough job and I still worry that I will have a leak later on.
I admit sometimes I wish I hadn't done it.

Happy Camping

[Rdsmith281]

Thanks. Helps alot.

[Bocamo]

Be certain to use a heat gun to soften and help scrape off the sealant to avoid cutting into the roof whane taking off the old vent.

[Rdsmith281]

I'm hoping the old vent is not stuck on too well, being a new 2016 model. Thank you though.

[raytwntrvlr]

Originally Posted by Rdsmith281

I'm hoping the old vent is not stuck on too well, being a new 2016 model. Thank you though.

Oh you will see... It is really stuck on. I was very impressed with how well installed the vent was. You will also see how flimsy the roofing material is. The sealant is much tougher.

I would say the advice to use a heat gun is probably good.

I used a combination of eternabond tape and dicor sealant over the installed edges. So far so good.

[WolfWhistle]

Yes, you will see. You will not be able to get all of the sticky stuff off, but don't need to. Be careful and don't punch a hole in the EPDM (or rubber). When going back on you will need butyl tape and it is very very sticky. When it sticks to itself, you can't get it apart. The trick is to keep it cool when working with it. The first time you accidentally let it touch itself, you will see. The other thing is to have a tube of the right color dicor so you can cover the joint where vent meets roof and the screw heads. Make it look like (or better than) the factory.

One of my vents locations had a cheap-0 fan, so the wire was there; the other wasn't wired. IMO, the factory should wire every vent location. I had to pick up B+ and ground from a nearby switch and light. The source you find... make sure it is "hot" all the time, not just when a light is on. You can work 12v "hot", it won't hurt you, but you might want to find a remove the fuse, so as not to blow it. If you see Romex nearby, that is 120vac... leave it alone!

While up there (be careful up there), give the whole roof a good looking over for bubbles and places for potential leaks. I found a few.

Oh, I love my two Maxxair vents. One of the best mods I can think of.


WW

[The_Rhino]

Our 2-slide TT has (4) skylights plus the dinette A/C opening. Therefore I decided to install (2) Black MaxxAir Deluxe Fans so that they can work in push/pull fashion to move air throughout the TT. One MaxxAir was installed in the rear kids' slide-out bunkroom and the other in front of the dinette A/C. I reserved the master bedroom skylight for a future 2nd A/C upgrade. And, I didn't change-out the bathroom skylight or flimsy exhaust fan as I do not want to suck-up sewer smell or push it into the rest of the TT... Plus, having a skylight in the bathroom provides more light...

Typically I setup the dinette MaxxAir to pull-in air at a speed higher than kids' rear bedroom fan. This way the cool air is not blowing directly down on them... I also vent the bathroom skylight & master bedroom skylight so the extra pressure travels up & out those 2 locations. This means no sewer smells are sucked-up by a bathroom exhaust fan & we also get cool air flowing through the master bedroom without a noisy fan overhead...

The first skylight took 2X as long because I used a heat gun on very low settings to (carefully) removed the old Dicor to get to each screw & then the underlying butyl tape. For the 2nd skylight I knew where the screws were, so I just pushed through the Dicor with the cordless drill's Philips head while heating the underlying Butyl. Once all of the screws were removed it popped right off without damaging the roof. Very little Butyl tape remained but I wiped the rest off with either Isopropyl Alcohol or Acetone - can't remember which - but the one I used did not hurt the roofing...

In both locations I found 12V wiring to nearby lights within reach. There wasn't much slack in the wiring, so I had to make my splices by reaching into the small space between the roof & the ceiling. This was a bit tedious but I had just enough space to work... I used the right wire nuts for the number & size of wires spliced (follow color-coded chart on side of wire nut packaging...) I then secured the wire nuts with electrical tape. I also TESTED the wiring to make certain the manufacturer used white for positive leads & black for negative at both locations - you never know, so always double check... I also checked that I had 12V even when the lights were off...

Earlier I had swapped-out all lights to LEDs so adding the MaxxAir fans cannot overtax the same circuit... The remotes control both fans but require line-of-sight to work. Therefore I simply mounted the remote holders to wall locations that can only control the nearest fan.

On hot days I let them run while going down the road so our TT & fridge aren't 110 degrees when we arrive at the CG. Unlike leaving windows cracked, rain cannot get in while traveling... Also, they serve as A/C backup for our dog. After a tiring run we will let the dog nap under the A/C while we go out for a couple hours. In case the 110V A/C fails I setup the 12V fans so that they will automatically turn-on at just under 80 degrees. The fans ensure that the inside temps do not rise above outside temps so the dog will be fine...

We've had the (2) MaxxAir fan setup for (2) seasons without any issues or leaks.

[Helmsey]

I installed that same fan in the kitchen area of our 365. Before I started the project I pulled the trim off the inside of the existing vent and looked around for wires. I found several to chose from and used my multimeter to figure out what wires were constant 12v and which were switched 12v.

[Rdsmith281]

Thanks