Use inline duct fan together with GF internal fan?

Question. i purchased the cloudline 6” fan with hopes of reducing the sound. Can the fan be used with the internal GF fan? if no, why?

1 Like

Yes, but then it won’t be any quieter.

1 Like

It can be, but the main advantage with the booster is that you can cut the noise dramatically by disconnecting the onboard exhaust fan.

2 Likes

I wondered if that might be the case. So, i’m assuming disabling the internal
fan would affect warranty?

2 Likes

I don’t know about that, it would be a question for support. I expect it would if it was determined your machine has a failure due to overheating.

3 Likes

Thanks so much for the quick feedback!

2 Likes

Do you know how many cfm that fan is rated to? In theory, anything around 200 cfm should be enough to do the job.

2 Likes

351 cfm

3 Likes

more than enough,
curious though did you increase to a 6" and and then reduce to out side to a 4" or just stay at 6?
PIctures if you can :sunglasses:

1 Like

planning on using 4”
duct (also cloudline) with reducers. i’ll send pics once done!

1 Like

5 times the price of the usual Vivosun 195 CFM fan but should get a lot better results and there is a place where you can turn the interior fan off just below where you go for the Set Focus pulldown in the GFUI. I am running both Vivosun and the Glowforge exhaust and find the there is a lot less goop ending up inside than either alone. With 351 CFM you should see even more of that effect even without the Glowforge exhaust needing to run.

It should not affect the warranty if you use the GFUI to disable the fan though I am not any sort of official source.

4 Likes

thanks! i’ll let everyone know how it works out!

4 Likes

Those 6” fans are all anyone is getting in the FB crowd. Very popular. I was meaning to ask around on here, though because I wasn’t sure of the original source and whether they had any clue what they were doing. :wink:

3 Likes

You don’t need to “disconnect” the internal fan. You can simply switch it off within the GFUI. I believe the toggle is “Compact Filter Attached.” It then relies on the “filter” for air movement and turns off the internal exhaust fan. Your actual “filter” being your inline fan of course.

5 Likes

Last week I connected this inline fan, and it’s working so well:

Tjernlund M-4 Metal Inline Duct Fan, 200 CFM, 4" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008CI55F2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_OyAdEb81S3XDD

1 Like

So I bought a 4" inline duct fan and it has been working pretty well. I tend to just use it along with the GF exhaust fan though. That being said I have a friend who is way smarter than me (Masters in Materials Engineering) I talked to him about it and when you are running two fans inline it doesn’t increase the volume of air that is being moved it just increases the pressure inside of the ducting. But I have been using it mainly with acrylic and I notice it cuts down on the smell from cutting because I leave the GF closed for a bit after its done.

2 Likes

You can dial back the exhaust fan on the Glowforge by flipping the Compact Filter switch in the Settings gear icon in the interface. (To let the inline fan do the work.)

My empirical experience is otherwise. The volume is not additive but definitely greater than either alone. Probably diminishing returns but you could not increase the pressure in an open system without increasing the volume of the flow.

When my previous internal fan died I tried to use the 195 cfm fan alone and it did not work under the worst smoke production, but managed under more minor situations like engraving.

1 Like

Yeah, you also can’t increase pressure within a fixed volume without having more inlet air to begin with. It certainly doesn’t double the airflow, but it does increase it.

2 Likes

I was the first one to buy that, I believe, if it makes you feel any better. I didn’t make a big deal of it though. Guess I should have grabbed an Amazon affiliate link for it or something :joy:

7 Likes