Another new item from Milwaukee, a M18 Jobsite fan, how cool. I don’t really know how to write up this fan without sounding like a brand whore. All I can say is I love this fan, but I don’t love this fan. Not only does the fan seem like a high quality fan, but also powerful and durable. I love how it has 3 different fan settings and the large knob on the front is easy to grab. Even the battery is in an ideal place and easy to check the battery level. The adjustable housing is nice because you can pretty much aim this fan in any direction.
We both did agree on one item and that is the idea of using the fan in ac mode, plugging it into the wall. The great thing about this fan is even if you’re not a Milwaukee fan and don’t own any batteries, you can still use this fan. Milwaukee included a power adapter you can plug into the wall. While this is great, it also means you have to carry around and keep track of one more item. We both think it would have been much better to have a plug that an extension cord would attach to. Every jobsite has extension cords and how nice would it be to just plug the cord into the fan.
Now while I love the design and quality of the fan, it seems a little under powered compared to other brands. There are three main fans on the market, Milwaukee, Ryobi, Ridgid. Out of the three fans, Milwaukee is the most expensive coming in at $80, while Ridgid is $60 and the Ryobi is $40. With that said according to Home Depots website, the Milwaukee has less CFM and a shorter run time compared to the Ridgid plus the other two fans will work off extension cords. The other two fans also have more options if you want to hang it up. While I really want to love this fan because the outside design is awesome, I think they missed the mark with having a higher price, lower CFM, shorter run times and less hanging options. However I have to say this is my most used fan and still love it.
This is a neat product, and nice write up Eric. If there is a wet floor or spot in a basement needs dried out, this fan should be able to do that well. I hope that team yellow has something in the works for a cordless fan to so they don’t miss out. Nonetheless, another hit from Milwaukee Tool.
Even though the Milwaukee, Ridgid, and Ryobi are TTI products and similar in specs. I still find myself wanting the Milwaukee just because it is Milwaukee. I am so shallow.
The only thing this fan has going for it is that it looks nice. Is that good enough to pay $80, naw. I have a few box fans that I paid $15 to $20 & they work fine. Now, I don’t work in big areas & I have outlets in homes or use a small inverter to get power. I did see the Ryobi at HD not to long ago, but it did not have more power than a box fan (well that was my observation). I can be a fan boy of the major brands, but this one does not do anything for me. It looks really nice, but I have my eye on a Kreg pocket jig system that I can spend this money on. Laters TIA
Glad to see you guys point out shortcomings and are not just cheer leaders for the products sent for review.
Had to role with the Ridgid fan on this one..loved the Ryobi but i already had ridgid batteries and I love the hook hanging system. I work in a hot as hell warehouse all day and I like to hang the fan from the roof of my forklift. Cant do that with the Ryobi or the Milwaukee. Ridgid wins this battle for me.
Yeah, they didn’t exactly hit this one out of the park, did they?