This is the Fresh Breeze ventilator, a portable appliance that clamps, temporarily, into the opening of most overhead rectangular opening hatches. It isn’t solar-powered, unfortunately, so you’ll have to plug it in to your boat’s 12V system.
It has three speeds, ranging from 8,500 cubic feet per hour (at 18 watts) to 16,000 cubic feet per hour (42 watts).
I wonder if I could use this aboard Two Lucky Fish? While cruising, it’s difficult to get the moist air out of the V-berth in the mornings.
I would also like to keep air moving through the boat while it’s sitting unattended, especially in the winter, but the Fresh Breeze ventilator isn’t really intended for this application:
The ventilator will not accommodate wet weather and should not be used when a boat is underway. Water may damage the unit and void the warranty. This is a portable lightweight appliance that is designed to effectively change the air many times per hour in enclosed cabins. It should be removed and the hatch closed when conditions such as rain exist.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
$200 seems pretty steep for a fan that doesn’t seem to be ruggedized at all. I agree that the V-Birth in the CD-22 can get pretty damp. I have found that running the Wallas with the hatch in the V-Birth and the side windows in the pilothouse keeps things much drier, but it puts out way too much heat in the summer to be useable. If you get one let the C-Brats know how it works!
Interesting gadget, but YIKES !, $200? Yet it seems to be bass-ackwards. Sounds like the objective is to expel the moist air from the V-Berth, not disperse it throughout the rest of the boat. Aimed the other way, as an exhaust fan, it would ventilate the entire boat more efficiently by drawing in fresh air from open windows and doors……….Or is my thinking bass-ackwards?
For $20-30, you could get an electric radiator fan – those things move tons of air. That, plus 10 minutes of cutting and staining a piece of plywood to fit into your hatch, is all it would take – and those things are definitely ruggedized (since they live on the front of the car in all kinds of weather, they have to be.)
On the detriment side, the smallest one I can find on EBay draws 7A (84W) – but I’d imagine that contacting the manufacturer and asking them about the smallest one they make (for motorcycles, maybe?) would bring good results.
Any idea how quiet these are? I would like to use them at night on my cruising sailboat and find that most are so noisy they bother me at night.