Quietcool AFR PRO-1.3 Roof Mount Attic Fan - 1266 CFM - Adjustable Thermostat - 20ft Power Cord - Plug-and-play - Two Speed

For many years I owned an HVAC company and we installed lots of attic vent fans here in the South to help lower the load on the AC and reduce operating costs. But we found through bitter experience that the motors with sleeve bearings on the cheaper vent fans didn't last very long--some died in 3 or 4 years. The motor's "warranty" was not really any good b/c it cost more to replace it than it was worth. So for my own home I wanted a fan a ball bearing motor that has a good chance of lasting 15-20 plus years. Also, ball bearing motors are quieter.A solar powered vent fan was a non-starter because they are too weak and they stop running when the sun goes down which is when they'd be doing the most good (an attic traps lots of heat that sits there all night). Also I wanted a fan with a "fire fuse" that would shut off the fan if the house was on fire.This Quietcool attic vent fan has a legitimate (powerful) ball-bearing motor. Also, it's a "permanent split capacitor" type which may not mean anything to you but basically it uses half the electricity of the motors typically found in these units. It also has a fire fuse built in.The unit is very well made and heavy duty--nothing cheap about it.The instructions have lots of detailed installation pictures. It's an ambitious DIY project. I hired a roofer to install it (because we never did roof penetrations for obvious reasons).The picture on Amazon is slightly misleading (in a good way). The unit is already pre-wired. All you have to do is set the thermostat and plug it in.When installing the fan, the base plate needs a bead of weather sealant (explained in the instructions). It should be installed 5 feet from an existing ridge vent to keep it from sucking air in from the ridge vent.They recommend setting the thermostat between 80 and 100. This is lower than we have set them in the past but the thinking seems to be if you have a vent fan, get it working early and let it run long. If the attic is hotter than the outside air, it's heating your house all night.

Product is Made in USA and was very easy to install both in less than 3 hours including electrical and removal of the 2 wind turbines. I did not research actual size as was pleasantly surprised with results. I placed 2 on a small house (1000 sq/ft.) the change in attic temperature was easily noticeable. I would definably recommend this product.

I just used the fan motor and blades to replace an existing exhaust fan. Was pretty easy to do and works great. No electrician needed.

Product arrived as promised and was as described.

Quietcool AFR PRO Roof Mount Attic FanFrom my research, this appears to be the “best” roof mount attic fan on the market. I bought two of them for our two attics from a local big box store -- as it’s easier to return large boxes locally if there is an issue. I specifically avoided models with Internet connectivity, as that could result in technical issues – especially over the long haul – and..., I couldn’t care less about monitoring a roof fan via my cell phone.- fan’s were well packaged in huge boxes and had no damage.- four wires within a BX sheathing (steel coil) emanate from the fan motor: green (ground), white (neutral), black (high speed), and red (low speed). White & black = high speed. White & red = low speed.- I tested both fans on high and low speed before proceeding further. Both worked fine; the ball bearing motors are indeed “quiet” with only the sound of whooshing air standing next to it; plus the blades were balanced and they didn’t hit the fan frame. Actually, once mounted and powered on in our main roof, we couldn’t hear anything from a running fan from the floor below the attic. I climbed up into the attic upset that it wasn’t working – but it was, it’s just so incredibly noise free, you have to be in the attic to realize that it’s on.- that BX cable feeds into an inexpensive thermostat meant to control the fan – with a long 110v 3-prong cord coming from it. I removed that thermostat (see below) and cord and connected a short better quality 3-prong cord to BX cable via a small steel utility box – that cord then plugs into (in my case) a thermostatically controlled receptacle in each attic adjacent to the fan.My experience with inexpensive attic fan thermostats, the type included with this unit, is that they connect power at the set temperature (e.g., 105 degrees) and then disconnect when the temperature drops 10 degrees below that (95 degrees in this example). That’s workable, but is an electricity hog – since a fan would run for many hours each day longer than necessary. Instead, for years, I’ve been using Peco TF115-001 NEMA 4X Line Voltage Thermostats — they are mounted some distance from the fan it controls. A Peco thermostat disconnects when the attic temperature drops 3 degrees below the set point. Using a Peco results in the motor running less than half as often as when using an inexpensive (10 degree spread) thermostat. Since the motor runs half as often, electric costs are more than halved and the motor will last over twice as long. The choice is obvious.The fan has three body parts: the flashing on the bottom, a hood on top and an aluminum grill housing between. Connections between parts are via eight 10-32 painted steel machine screws and painted steel Neoprene EPDM Bonded Sealing Washers. I replaced that hardware with stainless steel 10-32 screws and stainless steel Neoprene EPDM Bonded Sealing Washers, available from Amazon. Before installing the fan, apply red thread locker on the aluminum grill screws, because once it’s on the roof, you can’t retighten a loose screw. All fans vibrate somewhat, which can loosen screws over time.The aluminum grill attaches to the bottom (primary) flashing, resulting in a joint between the two pieces. At the connection point, rain water would invariably “wick” up into (drawn via capillary action) the tight area between the aluminum grille and steel flashing – which would eventually result in the steel rusting out, ruining the fan housing. To mitigate this, I sealed that joint with black Permatex silicone seal; using a second application of silicone after the first had dried. Half of a five buck tube was enough for both fans. Clean the joint area with alcohol, cut the silicone applicator for a 3/16" bead; apply a bead around the base, smooth it over with your fingertip, driving the silicone into the crevice. Allow a day or two to dry and do a second silicone application. The silicon shouldn’t be thick. On the fan side of the unit, I stuffed Frost King Indoor & Outdoor B2 Mortite Caulking Cord in the gap between the fan housing and the primary flashing; cleaned the sheet metal with alcohol and applied Shurtape SF 686 UL ShurMASTIC Butyl Foil Indoor/Outdoor HVAC Tape over the entire seam, the best sticking tape of it’s kind on the market. These steps prevent water from attacking that joint.That BX cable is only a slip fit over a male nipple on the motor. The BX is easily rotated by hand at that point, which means it could come loose over time. To mitigate this, I tightened a 5/8" stainless steel clamp around the BX near the motor to keep it on. See Customer image.The two wires from the capacitor hood enter the motor with no protection other than the wire’s insulation. Since heat and vibration over many years could wear through that insulation resulting in a short, I covered those wires with shrink wrap. (Remove the nut holding the capacitor to the motor, pull the black hood back over the wires, mark where the striped wire goes, remove both wires, feed a 5/8" shrink wrap section over those wires, heat it while slipping it into the motor, reverse to reinstall.)Temporarily remove the fan hood to install over the 16.5" diameter hole cut in your roof sheathing. This allows fan alignment with the hole and access in order to nail the fan flashing down. We were having new shingles installed and had the contractor do the install during the job. Fan looks great on the roof!