I'm looking for two industrial drum type fans for my shop, they need real bearings not oil soaked fiber pads. The last smaller one i picked up still works but goes off kilter every few minutes because the oil pad bearings aren't accessible to oil.
Industrial drum type fan
- Thread starter 930dreamer
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Steve from Socal
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Tubeaxial fans?
Steve
Steve
Steve from Socal
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How big I have two 48" 5HP 240/480
60 miles north of Wichita
Steve
60 miles north of Wichita
Steve
4xdog
Well-known member
I saw a DeWalt-branded drum fan for sale at Costco today. Not gigantic -- probably 32-inch-ish -- but a decent size. I forgot to go back and check the price, but knowing Costco it was a Chinese product at a good price. I got a Stanley-branded fan at Costco for my shop a few years ago and it's been working continuously for probably four years.
Stuart in MN
Well-known member
Grainger has a pretty wide selection, but they get pricy when you go from the light duty type with bushings to the standard duty type with ball bearings. https://www.grainger.com/search/hva..._optout=true&searchQuery=fan&categoryIndex=13
nadogail
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Repurposed furnace blowers, you can often get them in exchange for a box of Doughnuts, just make it clear you are not in competition with the shop that took the old furnace out.
Richard D
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I have several old belt-drive "whole house" or attic fans I use, way better than the Chinese junk at the big box store. I have got most for free or less than $100. Most run on a 1/4 or 1/3 hp motor, cheap enough to replace if needed. I build them out with plywood, electrical outlets, and a long heavy cord. I use them not only as fans but as a work station.
Still need to put a guard on this one.
Still need to put a guard on this one.
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clutchee
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Wife got me one of those last Valentine’s Day, love it. During Texas summers it gets used a lot.
mine has a low and high speed.
mine has a low and high speed.
samss
Well-known member
Bought one of these from TSC about four years ago.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/comfort-zone-42-in-industrial-drum-fan-czmc42?cm_vc=-10005
It's worked well for me, but it isn't quiet.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/comfort-zone-42-in-industrial-drum-fan-czmc42?cm_vc=-10005
It's worked well for me, but it isn't quiet.
OP
Richard D
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You don't need to spend near that much for old attic fans. If you want to come down to my neck of the woods I'll make you a good deal.
Again, old furnace fans work great on can be had for free. mount a couple angle iron for feet, and you can buy rotary multispeed switches fairly inexpensively. I have a nice 1/2 HP unit with a three speed switch/motor. If I want to move air around in the shop low speed is plenty, but i can set it in the doorway and crank it too high to exhaust out the shop if I need to. Plus it doesn't take up much room.
andyvh1959
Well-known member
I have the squirrel cage fan from my old furnace. I had planned to hang it from the trusses in my new detached garage, and size the pulleys to make it run slow and just move enough air to provide some natural cooling/air circulation. Would I be better to mount casters on it so I can move it around the shop floor instead?
Don't put castors on it, it will just roll away in the wind!
I found a set of four rubber feet I put on mine, plus the rotary switch from Amazon.
andyvh1959
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Heh, heh, yeah thought about that, should have said I'd use the caster wheels that can be locked like those on a tool cart.
Richard D
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Can you post a link to that rotary switch?
Richard D
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Is it a direct drive motor or belt? If it's belt driven you can slow it down with a different pulley.
SoonerBorn77
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- Jul 2, 2021
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- 10
Check out the company “Big *** Fans”. No joke. They make amazing products.
cvairwerks
Well-known member
We’re moving from the drum fans to the Big Assed fans at work. Considerable upfront costs to do so, but so much better on noise in the hangars. Six or seven BA fans running full speed are still quieter than one two speed drum fan.
Richard D
Well-known member
My dad has a Big *** fan. Was a problem with it, they would not sell a circuit board separately, had to spend two grand on a complete new motor. Should have been free. I'd never buy from them!
greg13
Well-known member
Can't go wrong with Patton fans. I have a 48" at the shop that is 20+ years old, used every day all day long during the summer. On it's second shaft & 3rd set of bearings.
ZRX61
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We had a 4ft fan like that in the hangar, 2 speed. Sounded like a ******** radial engine on high.
billt460
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The problem with big fans...... ANY big fans, is they're noisy. There is no way around this. When you start moving a lot of air molecules by having big steel blades smashing into them at a high rate of speed, it's going to make a lot of noise. The higher the RPM they turn, the more noise they're going to make.
All of these larger diameter drum type fans move a lot of air. But they make a lot of noise doing it. I live in Lake Havasu City. One of the hottest cities in the nation. I have my garage evaporator cooled, which helps a lot. I can keep the garage 85 F when it's 115+ F outside. I also have 3 large fans to help move that cool air around. The inside of my garage sounds like a Russian TU-142 Bear Bomber at takeoff power, when everything is up and running. But it's either that...... Or sweat.
All of these larger diameter drum type fans move a lot of air. But they make a lot of noise doing it. I live in Lake Havasu City. One of the hottest cities in the nation. I have my garage evaporator cooled, which helps a lot. I can keep the garage 85 F when it's 115+ F outside. I also have 3 large fans to help move that cool air around. The inside of my garage sounds like a Russian TU-142 Bear Bomber at takeoff power, when everything is up and running. But it's either that...... Or sweat.
matt_i
Well-known member
Disassemble and adapt pillow block bearings? Other than making up the structure the bearings self-align and should provide a long life imo. The big assumption is there's a nominal-sized shaft diameter but I would be a little surprised if it didn't align with either inch- or metric- stock.
cvairwerks
Well-known member
Our Big Assed Blackjack's move a heck of a lot of air at low sound levels. Running at full speed, you can stand with your head against the guard and have a conversation at normal voice levels.
I've got an acquaintance that has one of the PowerFoil 24 footers in his hangar. Running full speed, you stand under it and use your phone without any problem.
The problem with most of the shop fans, is that the blades are simply bent sheet metal or formed plastic and are not really designed to move air without beating it into submission first.
andyvh1959
Well-known member
I plan to use pulleys and belt to slow down the speed of the squirrel cage furnace fan to a range that still moves enough air while being reasonably quiet. The challenge will be getting the electric motor speed reduced to about 4:1 to get the fan speed down. A 1200 rpm motor with a 4:1 reduction in the pulleys will get 300 rpm at the fan, but it remains to find out if that speed is good for moving air in my shop. I could also choose a three speed motor with the pulley setup to get the air distribution I'd want.
rawen2
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billt460
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The problem with all of those "Big *** Fans" is the price. $6,000 for a 6' fan? $1,000 @ foot, seriously? I could air condition my entire 1,000 sq. ft. garage for $2,000 less than that fan. The 24' hanger fans are well into 5 digits. Perhaps it doesn't matter if you own a Gulfstream 650 ER. But for the average guy their prices are way too high for someone who just wants to move some air around his shop or garage.
Amazon.com: Big Ass Fans Black Jack 6 Foot Indoor/Outdoor Mobile Fan with Wheels, Onboard Variable Speed Control, OSHA Compliant Steel Cage, IPX5 Rated, Pre-Assembled, Black: Kitchen & Dining
Buy Big *** Fans Black Jack 6 Foot Indoor/Outdoor Mobile Fan with Wheels, Onboard Variable Speed Control, OSHA Compliant Steel Cage, IPX5 Rated, Pre-Assembled, Black: Floor Fans - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases
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Richard D
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If you can make sense of the wiring go for it. I prefer belt driven fans, the motors are easily replaceable, and pulley size determines speed.
SILVERPLATE
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I bought one at Costco a few weeks. Found it to be of high quality and does a nice job moving air so far.
OP
billt460
Well-known member
Tractor Supply has this 60" (5 foot), barrel fan for $700.00. Compare that to Big *** Fan's 6' model for $6,000.00. Are you willing to pay another $5,300.00 more for a 12" bigger blade?..... I didn't think so. Neither am I.