Cool Attic CX302DDWT Direct Drive 2-Speed Whole House Attic Fan with Shutter, 30 Inch

I remember helping my dad install a whole house fan like this when I was a kid in Michigan. We had a small tri-level house and I remember the fan doing a great job in ventilating the entire house. So when I started thinking of ways to lower my AC bill, a whole house fan came immediately to mind. I looked around several places locally. Both Lowe's and HD had similar models but their CFMs were lower. And for whatever reason, the boxes looked like everyone passing by gave at least one good kick. Factoring in the military discount from my wife, the local options came out a little cheaper even after tax, but I decided to go with the higher CFM so I could draw cool air from my basement.Shipping was fast, when it was actually shipped. After ordering, Amazon took about 5 days to "process" the order, during which time the price dropped $20. I tried to cancel and reorder, but by the time I got to it, Amazon already shipped it. And it came next day air Fed Ex. Wow, I can't imagine what that shipping must have cost Amazon...First impression was generally good. The louver screen wasn't set up right; the louvers on one side were not attached to the plastic hinge/screw so I had to back those out and in again so they would open and close cleanly. But that was no big thing and the screen itself came undamaged (although it was not to remain that way...) The fan box itself seemed sturdy. Fan blades were free of damage. So far so good...Install went fine. There really was only one place I could put the fan, right over the landing at the top of the stairs to the second floor. Other areas were either vaulted or had HVAC and other vents running and unsuitable. I did have to move a light and a smoke detector but those can literally go anywhere so I wasn't worried. One bonus: apparently the builder rough-framed an opening for a pull-down attic stairs at that spot. It was about 30" wide so that part was already framed out for me. I sectioned the opening to 32" on the other side and it was ready.I laid down some foam edging strips from my kids' foam play mats. I guess it couldn't hurt. I can't compare to an install without one to compare the noise and vibration level but I am satisfied with what I have.The rest of the install went fine. It's really not that hard except for the heat. I was sweating so much I was afraid I might short-out the motor. I found a headband and aside from looking like a 80's aerobics newbie, it did the trick. Pre-drilling will help a lot. I'd pre-drill holes on all sides and partially drive in screws as well. Do whatever you can to cut the time you spend in the attic.Electrical connections are really simple. Just connect the ground first in the junction box. I connected all other wires first, and trying to screw in that little screw added 10 more minutes and about 5 lbs in lost water weight... And if you're losing as much water like I did, drink, drink and drink some more, while you're in the attic and after you're done. I didn't, and I was double-teamed by a 24 hour flu and dehydration 3 days after the install. I noticed I wasn't sweating very much, if at all, the next two days but since I was in an air-conditioned space the entire time, I didn't think much of it. Then I spent almost all of Sunday put in the sun and once I got home, I started running 103 degree fever with head and body aches. I don't remember ever feeling this bad and that includes when I was sick with appendicitis.I didn't have any problem with the quality of switches. I did purchase a timer switch and will replace the included one with it. It has 15, 30, and 60 minute options as well as just on/off. Again, wiring was very straight-forward since I ran a new line.Usually when I install something on my own like this, I get a little nervous the first time I throw the switch. I'm not a trained contractor or electrician or anything, so I tend to check and double check everything incessantly. But this install was so simple that I wasn't concerned at all. I knew that it was completely within my skill level and with all the checks and reviews, I was completely confident, confident enough to call my wife over before I threw the switch. And it worked! My wife was suitably impressed.Installing the louvers was needlessly frustrating. I don't know why they don't use phillips screwheads but my screwdriver was slipping all over the place. In retrospect, I should have pre-drilled there too. My wife was holding up one end of the louver with a broomstick and with all the fumbling, her arm got tired and the stick slipped, putting a small dent in the center piece of the louvers. This was the only flaw in an otherwise perfect install.Right now, the weather around here isn't really suited for the fan, except very early in the morning. I tried it a couple of times and I was very satisfied with the result. In about 15 minutes, it dropped the interior temperature from around 84-85F to 81-82 with the exterior temp being around 76-78. I couldn't keep it running for much longer since I had to get the kids ready and the outside temp was steadily rising anyway. I think we'll really start getting dividends in September and on as evening and morning temperatures drop much lower.All in all, very satisfied with the product.But drink, seriously. Drink water.

I give this fan five stars for the evident quality of the product. It is well manufactured, with apparent strength in all the right places, durability(based on how things look just after installation), and good, close fitting parts. When I turn it on, it does exactly what I had hoped it would, and the pull from the fan is noticeable throughout our 1800 sq. ft. house.Packaging and protection: My experience with delivery was fortunate, but there are still a few issues:1. The center of one side of the double-layer box had about a 2" hole in it from the fan shaft, although one layer of clear packing tape had been put over the hole. I don't know whether the hole formed during shipping or during earlier handling. No product damage was found in relation to this.2. When I removed the product from the box, the capacitor assembly ( I suppose that is what it is) for the motor was broken off and hanging loose by its wires. It is a sealed bakelite box that mounts to one of the motor case screws by a fairly fragile neck. Surely, dropping the whole box maybe a foot or slightly more would have been enough to break that mount through momentum. This was an anticipated defect, so I simply glued the mount back together with ABS cement. Epoxy or Gorilla Glue would no doubt fix that mount as well, to roughly original strength. Now that the fan is installed, with no further significant physical shock coming, that repaired mount seems fine.3. In my case, the shutters were not bent or broken in shipment; they were completely fine. However, this may have been good fortune. The spacious side of the box seems quite vulnerable to impact from other cargo. The packaging designers can sort this out. Anyway, the shutters are protected in an internal box with a thick slab of soft foam on one side, so that surely helps. They are delicate, thin aluminum, light in weight so that the fan opens them easily with air flow. I made an unintended dent, which was not hard to straighten with hand pressure and the rounded end of a screwdriver handle, but any significant dents would have been a challenge to make invisible.4. Four medium hardness foam sticky blocks are adhered to the pulley side of the fan frame. These give pretty good protection, and basically they should just be pulled off, leaving some foam and sticky goo on the frame. This is only a bother at the motor end of the frame, where the blocks in my case were placed on top of the motor mounting bolts. I had to use a knife to cut away the extremely thick goo so that I could mount the motor properly and tension the belt.The remaining issues have to do with assembly and instructions:1. There seems no reason for a mechanical problem if the purchaser understands that that the product is put together but not finally assembled. The parts seem quite nice, but every screw and bolt attachment should be checked. A shaft may have a flat side for a pulley screw, but the screw may not be on the flat, or at all tight. The fan needs to be positioned at the right level inside the housing, and so forth. If the purchaser checks all of the physical connection points for position and tightness, there should be no problem, but otherwise things will surely begin to come apart. Also, the motor is turned inward for protection during shipping, and that blocks the fan from turning. That is just a first hint that the whole assembly should be examined, with no assumptions.2. My instruction sheet shows that the black screw on the high/low switch should connect to the black "high" line running to the motor, but I checked the connections with a meter and found that this connected the high and low lines to each other while delivering no power. In truth, the black screw needed to connect to the black line delivering power from the on/off switch. This is a minor issue, if one tests things before final assembly of the switches, but it would be a bigger pain to change the connection once everything is put into the wall and closed up, due to simply trusting the instructions.I feel that this is a good product, provided that the motor and the bearings will perform well for many years. I don't see why they should not, but of course proof lies elsewhere. It seems well made, once it arrives in reasonably good shape. It is as loud as I would expect a fan of this size and power to be; neither more nor less, and mounting with a padding layer of silicone or other soft material makes sense to dampen reverberations. It seems that the biggest opportunity for a problem lies in any assumption that is arrives and then is more or less "ready to go." It is not far from that, but that short distance needs to be given due attention.

Works great. cools a split level home quickly and quietly. this thing moves a lot of air through the house. It came on time and well packaged