gardeners corner CYCLONE 12" Oscillating 3 Speed Setting Hydroponic home Office Box Fan

This is a Fantastic Fan moves lots of air does what it says on the box. Loved it bought another. Thanks

This is going to be a comparison of 30cm box fans to help you choose which to purchase. At the end I will go over general info about why you might want a fan like this over a ‘normal’ desk fan design.This is a comparison of the Cooltone FA-B12 (White and grey with London Europe written on it) to the Cyclone Black (All black). I was planning a 3-way review, but the amazon supplier I used failed to ship me the BLT FT-30C I ordered and sent me two FA-B12s instead – then ignored all communication... From the product images the BLT FT-30C looks very similar to the Cyclone and I would guess much of what I will say about that model also probably applies.The FA-B12 comes already built and ready to go, but the Cyclone has separate feet and these need to be attached. This could be good or bad depending on your needs. Having detachable feet does give the opportunity to fit the fan completely flush if you wish to DIY that. It would also enable the fan to be secured (DIY) to a wall if needed.The FA-B12 has a 1.6m power cable, where as the Cyclone only has a 1.2m cable.In terms of build quality, it is obvious from the moment you unbox them that the FA-B12 is much better built than the Cyclone. The control nobs of my cyclone fell off immediately. They don’t seem to be glued or clipped on or anything. Turning the nob will see them often come off in your hand. This was rather surprising as at the time of my purchase the Cyclone cost more than the FA-B12. Though it does seem the prices fluctuate quite a lot and it may not always be the case.The Cyclone also seems to have some dubious wiring. When the timer runs to zero it continues loudly ticking for many minutes even when the unit is switched off completely at the wall. The rotating front plate is quite happy to rotate even when the fan is off, should you have that feature switched on. None of these issues affect the FA-B12, it behaves as you would expect: When it is off, it is off.In terms of air pushed, I found the Cyclone is the more powerful of the two. At every speed the Cyclone air can be felt at a greater distance compared to the FA-B12. However, this does come with a cost.Measuring the noise which they make on their lowest speed setting, gave the following results:At 1m: FA-B12 = 45db, Cyclone = 51dbAt 3m: FA-B12 = 43db, Cyclone = 48dbAn important extra factor is the type of sound made. Where as the FA-B12 makes a lower pitched hum as you would expect. The Cyclone sound is higher pitched and rattily. Possibly a product of its lower build quality or it may just be a more aggressive speed controller.NB: At every speed setting it did seem like the Cyclone was running at a higher rpm.Whereas I found the FA-B12 sound quite bearable, the Cyclone, although not that much louder, had a very annoying sound and I doubt many people could put up with it in a living space setting for long periods.NB: The Cyclone is marketed more for outdoor useAs you step up the speed both units become louder as you would expect, but interestingly although the Cyclone always remains the louder, the gap closes between them at top speed.So, if you want a box fan for home or office use, I would recommend you go with the FA-B12. I have not tested the Cyclone outside so cannot comment on how it stands up to the elements, but if you want maximum airflow and don’t care about the noise the Cyclone is the stronger of the two in that respect.Briefly I’ll just explain why you might want a box fan like one of these over a ‘normal’ fan. For me it comes down to window sills and pets. When the weather has been hot and your upstairs rooms are roasting, you need to open your windows to let in the cool air. But, if you have a pet that might decide to jump out of said window you have a problem. Box fans like these can be setup in front of the open window and direct cool air into the room, whilst most pets will avoid trying to go past them because of the noise and the wind.I don’t have particularly deep window sills, but Im able to set my box fans up in front of my venetian blinds and it still works great. If you try that with a conventional desk fan, it is unlikely it will fit on the window sill. Even if it did, it would sit much further forward of the window and you also would not be able to activate the oscillation function. These box fans have a rotating front grill, which rotates the direction of the air in the room without needing any extra space around the fan to do so. The only issue with this design is that you never get air directly ahead of the fan. These types of box fan can only direct air away from the centre of the fan (unless you DIY remove the front grill), so bear that in mind.

Works well and good price

Package arrived early. Item as described. Quiet operation. Perfect for hot summer nights with the timer function.

On the lowest setting, about a strong wind... on 3 - a really strong force that can push air across a good sized room.I have used this mounted in an open window as a type of budget air conditioner, and with the rest of the air intake points blocked off and the other side of the house open, it really can cool the upper floor by a noticeable amount.