One of my co-workers gave me a really nice old box fan that he was ordered
to replace. It needed a face-lift and a new switch. Here are the before and
after photos. I had to straighten some sheet metal, sand off some rust and
masking tape that was applied about 20 years ago. Some Rustoleum (this is a
high quality Rustoleum paint job here... there are three colors!) went a
long way to cleaning up the appearance of this fan. A new switch, a new line
cord, and a scrounged handle complete the job. A little careful bending of
the grills on reassembly took care of the rattling noises. This fan is now
ready for another 30 years of service.
An all metal box fan is hard to find today. Most are plastic and seem to come out of the factory warped, dented, flimsy, and generally unenthusiastic. This one is all metal - frame, fan, grills, everything. It has enough mass to keep a good gust of wind from knocking it out of a window. The motor is a two speed unit that looks like the type used on a central air-conditioner condenser unit. Come to think of it, the fan would look at home in that same application. On low it moves an amazing amount of air. On high it sounds like a small airplane is outside and moves enough air that I almost knocked several pictures off my wall while testing.
I would instantly grab another one like this if I got the chance.
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