Frickin Hella Fans

January 31, 2015

To say I am annoyed with Hella Turbo Fans is an understatement. These very basic fans cost a mint and aren’t nearly as robust as one would hope. We lost 3 in the first year of cruising. Hella was kind enough to replace them for us, but more continue to fail, and the RMA process was so involved that I’m just not inclined to try it again.

That said, they still receive high marks from reviewers, so I have concluded that they are simply the best of a very small and underwhelming pool of contenders.

One of the things that irks me to no end about these fans is that they tend to rattle when the boat’s voltage is topped (13.3v at the moment). This has been a problem with about half of our fans so far. Surprisingly, when I replaced the galley fan (which used to rattle) with the replacement fan, the new one rattled too. The replacement fan for my side of the berth also rattled. (Side note: the factory has also reversed polarity on the new batch of fans, so be careful to connect the striped wire to negative).

So here is my gift to you, fellow sailor with a rattling Hella Turbo fan. The next time that high frequency rattle interrupts your sundowners or morning coffee, jump right up from your comfy settee and grab a rubber band. Pull a small rubber band from the front/top (depending on mount orientation) to the back/bottom (see photo) of the bracket that doesn’t have a thumbscrew, and then sit back down to enjoy the breeze in silence for once.

You are welcome.

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