[wind_magic]

We've all seen them ...

These little 12vdc fans with clamps on them. Trouble is, I have had a number of them and they break so easily that I am tired of throwing good money after bad. Either the bearings go bad, or the cigarette lighter style connector breaks, the wiring, or the mechanical parts of the fan.

Question is, is there a version that is built from reliable parts to last ?

I am not looking for theoretical answers to this problem, meaning I don't care about computer fans that I could adapt, etc, I just want an off the shelf 12vdc fan with a clamp on it that I can move around, one built to last.

Some of these cheap plastic fans only last for a few months.

 

[sugarbird]

I've had very good luck with the Hella 12V fans - maybe a little pricey ($70 at Defender), and no clip, but with just a tiny bit of McGyvering you could attach a clip of your own.

 

[Scallywag2]

Do you use them 24 hours and day and 7 days each week? The plastic clamp on the base of my 120v fan just broke and I have had it for years. Of course I do not use it that often. Have you tried looking at truck stops to see if those fans a better constructed?

Dot and john

 

[pdqaltair]

Caframo Bora. A little quieter and lasts longer than the Hella, in my experience.

For get the clamp-on feature. Get several and put them where you need them.

 

[Maine Sail]

Caframo Bora. A little quieter and lasts longer than the Hella, in my experience.

For get the clamp-on feature. Get several and put them where you need them.

Bingo! The Bora by Caframo is a great fan. The WalMart grade clip ons are disposable. Buy two or three at a time and when they start to get noisy pull out the next one...

 

[chef2sail]

Caframo Ultimate'

We have three of these- all over 5 years old
Have a suction base for portability and a well made clip on attachment as an option
quite..moves a lot of air....miniscule amp draw
easy to clean///cheap replacment parts

Dave

CAFRAMO Two-Speed Compact 12V DC Fan | West Marine

 

[eherlihy]

+ 1 on the Camframo Bora. I have 2 of them, that have been aboard for 3 years. I turn the battery switch OFF, but leave them switched on, and power them both with a 5W solar panel when I am not aboard to keep air circulating.

 

[TQA]

Another vote for Caframo I have 6 and some spares.

 

[wind_magic]

Camframo Bora it is.

Thanks to all.

 

[miatapaul]

I have also seen people use computer fans, quiet, and some can be rheostat controlled. I have seen them with a teak surround.

 

[christian.hess]

ive just used the cheap trucker/bus driver ones...replace as needed...

 

[SantaAna12]

Caframo Sirocco. Great engineering. IMO....worth the dinero. Countdown sleep mode. Folds flat on bulkhead when underway.....swings out for directed airflow. 3 levels....fairly quiet, low power draw.

 

[TQA]

ive just used the cheap trucker/bus driver ones...replace as needed...

TOO noisy for me.

I can sleep with the Caframo on low speed.

.

 

[christian.hess]

true...

 

[janice142]

I have three of the Hella ($22 from Defender's) fans on Seaweed. Two are bolted to bulkheads while the third is screwed to an old clamp like the Roofers/termite men use. It can clip on the rails and with the cigarette plug end I can power it easily.

The Hella is "too noisy" but when temperatures go above 80 degrees suddenly the sound is lots less!
The power draw is low. And sometimes having two fans makes all the difference in the world.

My advice? Buy a hella and find a clamp to screw it to. Mine are five years old now, and knock teak, still working well.

TO the far right is the fan with the clamp. I agree that having a fan that can be moved is useful -- this one blows right at my middle and keeps me cooler because it is closer than the bulkhead mounted one in my galley.

 

[Willis]

I have 4 of the Caframo Bora fans on my boat. They've been great for the last 3 years, but this summer I've started to experience some failures. These fans have a push button in the center that you press to change speeds and turn the fan on or off. Two of the fans developed a problem where they would not turn off. You could change speed but not turn the fans off. I added small rotary switches in the power supply line to fix that. Shortly thereafter one of them quit changing speeds. Luckily it froze in the "high" speed position. The other two are still operating normally. They are good fans, it just bugs me that Bora claims they are good for 5000 hours and I'm seeing failures way before that. These are installed inside dry cabins.