Maxxair or Fantastic Fan?

[muldoonman]

On the electric open,  2 arms for maxx and one on the fantastic. Makes a difference if winds are a problem.  Had a fantastic break in high winds on Gulf Coast and replaced with maxx.

[Jim Blackwood]

Don, you may be right but being DC fans they will run at reduced voltage which means slower and less current draw. Slower is quieter and with 4 fans on each hatch they should be able to run slow and still move quite a bit of air. Blade design has a lot to do with the noise too and these seem to be reasonably quiet. I'll try to get a photo or two today and post them here.

The main reason I went this way is that I wanted to retain the original function of the escape hatch and as that video shows the locking bar goes right through the middle. The simple solution was to leave that part alone. The top however can be done any way I want it, so if it is possible to buy only the top cowling for the MaxAir that would be the elegant solution.

Jim

[Jim Blackwood]

As promised, photos of the fans positioned in the lower cover of the escape hatch. I found a manual Maxxfan on Amazon for $154 so I figured I'd better buy it. Only had one, I'll probably have to pay more for the second one. Could be some interference with the raise/lower control but I should be able to work around that. Obviously I'll need some sort of a grille on the bottom side of the fans. Now the fun part. Because they are 12v and there are four of them I have lots of choices about how to wire them. I could go with 24v and wire them in pairs (smaller power leads that way), and for low/high I could run the pairs in series or parallel. Or if low isn't low enough I could supply them with 12v and run all four in series, or pairs, or all four parallel for low/med/high.

Then a pair of gas struts should complete the package.

Jim

[windtrader]

A maxxair draws 5 amps vs. 1.9 for Fantastic. Something to consider if on battery usage.

If that figure comes from specs, that is max current. The proper way to compare is doing a empirical test with some method for recording equal air volume flow for both then compare the current draw. If entire flow is not available using a wind meter could substitute if the air flows through the same size vent.

I'd bet the actual numbers are much closer but really who cares at all if you are on a pole or a low storage house system.

[chessie4905]

https://www.etrailer.com/question-212291.html

[Jriddle]

I have both and they both work. I can't say I have a favorite. The Maxxair howls more on the lower settings. We leave it open most of the time because it is in the bathroom. The Fantastic fans don't have the automatic close feature only the temperature sensor.

John

[luvrbus]

I have always had F/F never had problems with one,I have power opens and Tstat controls now or you can manually open the fans,remote or wall switches and set fan speeds.the price is getting stupdid on the F/F now though   

[chessie4905]

I just bought one recently from Camping World at a good sale price , also with Good Sam member free shipping. You're right, priced high. Dometic must make a big profit on them. Probably less than 50 bucks in materials and tooling paid for years ago.

[chessie4905]

Might as well add those to the list of tires, batteries, motor oil, propane vs.  fuel oil,  etc.😁

[TomC]

I have two Fantastic fans-one in the bathroom that is permanently open just enough so the fan works (if I close both Fantastic fans and all windows are closed, your ears pop everytime someone goes in or out the front door-my bus is that tight), and the other is over the stove. Both have been in since 1994 with no problems. Have the same setup in my truck-both sets are simple with just thermostat. Would never get a Maxxair with that wort like hood on it-it looks hideous. Good Luck, TomC