Cowracer
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# Posted: 20 Sep 2017 09:31am - Edited by: Cowracer
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So now that our pavilion is done, I wanted to install some fans to move the air around. What I did NOT want is standard house ceiling fans where the blades droop after a couple years. I wanted metal fans. Actually, I wanted a 7' Big Ass Fan (yep, that's the actual company name) but wow are those suckers expensive.
I found some 6-foot brushed-nickel outdoor fans on the internet. At a price almost too good to be true. That should have been a huge red flag, but I pressed on. They are Casa Velocity 72" from lamps Plus. They are truly gorgeous
They installed easily, with one big issue of not using a standard diameter down-rod. In the end, I wound up framing a mount for them to use the included 6" long rod. They also included a 4-speed controller switch. It did not take too long to install. And that's where the midden hit the windmill.
On their highest speed setting, they move about as much air as an asthmatic gerbil. They claim to move 8000+ cfm, but I'm not sure how they measure that. The highest speed would have been perfect as the lowest speed. if you sat directly under it, you would feel some airflow, and you could feel the airflow wash across the floor a good 10' in any direction from the fan, but only about a foot high or so.
Needless to say, these might be nice on a cool evening, but they would not cut the mustard on a 100 degree Missouri day. I waffled back and forth a bit about pulling them down and sending them back, but in the end I wound up keeping them.
So on to attempt #2...
We have wall mounted oscillating fans for the operators at work, and these suckers flat put out the air. So I bought two from Global Industries.
They oscillate nearly 160 degrees, so we put them up on the headers for the trusses about 3/4 of the way to the back of the pavilion, one on each side. You can see them in this picture:
They come totally unassembled, and take a bit of work to get mounted and put together, but they are built like tanks. These fans are rated at about 8200 cfm on high, and they put out a nice blast of air. I think the oscillation makes it feel cooler than sitting under a solid blast of air. They can be a bit loud on high, but on low they are not very loud at all, and still provide a decent breeze.
Had I bought the oscillating fans first, I would have never bought the ceiling fans, but we have them and I guess we would keep them. I can highly recommend the global fans if you need to keep your cool in the summer.
tim
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