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Looking for a Fan

2K views 27 replies 11 participants last post by  LRM 
#1 ·
Hey guys. I'm looking to buy a fan for my shop. I am looking to spend between $100-150. I've looked at most of these from Home Depot and Harbor Freight. They all look decent but some of the reviews are pretty bad. Anyone know where I can get a fan that moves a lot of air in my price range?
 
#3 ·
Does it move a lot of air?

My shop is actually my garage and here in Texas it gets really hot and humid so I am looking for something that really moves a lot of air.
 
#4 ·
Moves a lot of air to where?




Exhausting dust filled air is one thing. Moving air to cool your self is different. I have two 3 speed overhead ceiling fans in my shop for circulating the air that's there. I have an air filtration unit Jet AFS1000 for cleaning the air that's there. I have a ceiling exhaust fan for removing the air that's there.



What is it you want to do?



If you move too much air, you'll end up blowing sawdust all over. You don't need that much moving air to keep you cool. :vs_cool:
 
#10 ·
Exhausting dust filled air is one thing. Moving air to cool your self is different. I have two 3 speed overhead ceiling fans in my shop for circulating the air that's there. I have an air filtration unit Jet AFS1000 for cleaning the air that's there. I have a ceiling exhaust fan for removing the air that's there.



What is it you want to do? I'm just looking for something to keep me from having a heat stroke.



If you move too much air, you'll end up blowing sawdust all over. You don't need that much moving air to keep you cool. :vs_cool:
You might talk to a heating and air conditioning place. A furnace blower makes a really good fan. They probably through them away by the truck load.

That's a good idea. Those little fan blow pretty hard. I might check and see what I can find.
 
#7 ·
Check Northern Tool.

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/category_fans

If you are patient they have some extraordinary sales. Find the item you like and check on it daily.

I bought a welding table that was listed at $399.00 and frequently was on sale at $329.00 but finally was on sale at $199.00 (when I bought it). It then went back to $399.00 and just recently revisited $199.00.

Everything I bought from them was of excellent quality. They deliver quickly and they are a reputable company. They also have stores but the nearest is about 600 miles from me so I only buy online.

This one is more than you wanted to spend, but at $200.00 off list it is a bargain: https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200660323_200660323
 
#9 ·
My "shop" is my garage, in Florida, in summer. It gets hot, on top of being humid.


I found that a cheap 7" desk clip-on fan works perfectly to help keep me cooler. It's clipped to a shelf 3 feet away from my work/standing space, it's small factor doesn't get in my way, and it's not so powerful that it blows dust everywhere. It's also quiet, which is important to me. As far as longevity, it's a $10 fan; I don't expect it to last me forever (2-3 summers if I'm lucky?). It'll get dust in the motor eventually, the bearings/bushings will fail ... and I'll buy another one.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Once you order from Norther Tool they send frequent updates. I got this ad this morning.

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/t...um=062119_SummerSale_A&cid=7631&mid=651789121

The fan was $310.00 and is now $170.00.

I get free shipping on everything. I don't know why that is. Possibly because I have passed some dollar amount threshold. I don't recall signing up for anything.

I put in a whole house attic fan in my home. If you have a way to install a powerful exhaust fan it will probably add more to your comfort than a direct fan would.
 
#17 ·
George. That is exactly what I wish I could do. I have a new window unit that I paid $500 for a couple years back. The problem is my house is a rent house and it is brick exterior. There no way I would be allowed to punch a hole in the brick to drop in an A/C unit. That would be the perfect option though.
 
#18 ·
I would suggest on of these.

https://www.amazon.com/B-Air-VP-25-Damage-Restoration-Plumbing/dp/B01DFW2BQA/ref=asc_df_B01DFW2BQA/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=194946745349&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16140893232018338677&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9016837&hvtargid=pla-334744374234&psc=1

The beauty is it blows a lot of air from the cooler (concrete) floor. My son and I used one when re-constructing a 14x24 shed on the rear of his garage. the temp was 95 with 90% humidity day and night that week. It SAVED us.
 
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#21 ·
I'm approaching this from a couple of different directions. I live in Oak Island NC and my shop is 16 x 55. I purchased three 52" Outdoor ceiling fans from Lowes (about $60 each on sale). I ordered three remote controls from Amazon (about $19 each). I will tie them into my existing ceiling lights thus they will only work when the ceiling lights are on, the remotes will control the speed, fan spin direction (up or down) and I can turn them off in the winter. In my previous shop which was an oversize 2 car garage I had two 52" fans (I was in AZ) and that was not enough for me.

I will use a whole house furnace fan for the air cleaner. It will dump air on one end of the 55' run and pull air from the other end. It will have a 0.3 micron filter on it. I may consider installing a Thien baffle on this, I need to do more research.

Dust collection will run to each tool. I got a super deal on some electronic gates. The DC will have a Thien baffle. I had one in my previous shop and it was SUPER.
 
#22 ·
For cleaning the suspended dust, get a WEN hanging filter unit. It has the same stats as the Jet, but if you look for the WEN best price, you might find it on sale. My first one was about $120, the second was on sale through WalMart online for $99. One in my ouside shed/shop, the other is in my garage. It has a timer and 3 speeds and a remote. On high it will blow a decent amount of filtered air your way. Here's a pix. BTW, it uses the same filters as the Jet and has the same power motor.
 

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#23 ·
I had a whole house window fan in my old apartment. It moved a lot of air and I had a steady breeze. If you have a window, this whole house window fan will move 3600 cfm. If yours is a typical two car garage (24' x 24' x 8') you will turn over the air once every 1-1/3 minutes--which translates into a steady light breeze no matter where you are in the garage. It also expunges any superheated air that might accumulate.

Available from Amazon.com, and in your specified price range.

https://www.amazon.com/Air-King-916...hole+house+window+,aps,148&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1
 
#24 ·
Thanks everyone for you your input, ideas, suggestions. Believe me I have followed-up on each your leads. I was in Lowe's this past weekend and decided on this one to start. Probably for the remainder of this year, I will stay with this fan and possibly pickup another one later on just to have a little extra air blowing.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Utilitech-Pro-20-in-3-Speed-Indoor-High-Velocity-Fan/1000018619

For my LONG TERM solution, I want to go with something like this.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Honeywell-450-sq-ft-115-Volt-Portable-Air-Conditioner/1000778550

Thanks guys!
 
#25 ·
I may be repeating myself?

You don't need huge volumes of high speed air to cool your body under "normal" working conditions. A low speed ceiling fan will do just fine unless you are doing cardio or hand planing a large surface. Cooling the air will be a better approach than moving air at high volumes which may dry out your sinuses and cause other respiratory issues.



You will want a high ceiling for a ceiling mounted fan with exposed blades so you don't whack them with a long board while working. It won't work well in an 8 ft garage or basement.:sad2:
 
#26 ·
You don't need huge volumes of high speed air to cool your body under "normal" working conditions. A low speed ceiling fan will do just fine unless you are doing cardio or hand planing a large surface. Cooling the air will be a better approach than moving air at high volumes which may dry out your sinuses and cause other respiratory issues.



You will want a high ceiling for a ceiling mounted fan with exposed blades so you don't whack them with a long board while working. It won't work well in an 8 ft garage or basement.:sad2:
Correct. I do wish I could install a ceiling fan or two but I would be decapitating myself and the boards, LOL. I am thinking if I Can get a porta cool unit along with my fan I should be relatively comfortable.
 
#27 ·
four wall mounted oscillating fans mounted high in the corners work as well as a ceiling fan. Even four stationary ceiling fans mounted high in the corners and aimed so as to create a vortex will works as well as a ceiling fan. Even four $20.00 box fans suspended and angled to create a vortex will work as well as a ceiling fan.

A freind had 4 fans (small ones) mounted on the walls in his non-air conditioned living room and it made a nice, constant breeze.
 
#28 ·
I'm actually using one of the 20" cheapy fans along with the one I just got from Lowes. It does help for sure. Once I get another one of the bigger ones from Lowes I should be good.
 
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