Air King 9166F 20" Whole House Window Fan , Gray

This fan does a great job at exhausting the air from inside the house and pulling in a strong flow of air from the open windows. This has allowed us to save considerably on the cost of air conditioning. We use it most in spring and fall but also on cooler dryer nights in summer. The key is to only run the fan when it’s actually cooler outside than inside. Our normal routine is to open up some windows before bed and turn on the fan, then close everything up in the early morning before the outside temps warm up. We then switch the ac on during the day. Honestly, except for the hottest summer days, the AC does not run until the afternoon. (We live in a fairly well insulated townhouse). On the most uncomfortable hot and humid days and nights we don’t use the fan. You have to do a lot of paying attention to the weather to get the most cost savings and comfort but we have found this fan well worth it! It is loud on high in the room which you install it. It is moving a lot of air so that is to be expected. It was fairly easy to install. Pay attention to the window dimensions however, because this just fit in our window. Also be advised if you keep the screen in the window which we do, you will have to remove the fan a couple of times a year to remove dust by vacuuming the screen. We have had this fan for three seasons now and really like it!

I grew up in a small house with no central air conditioning and our only means of cooling the house was a 25" Air King box fan, circa 1960s. By the time of my parents last move that original fan went missing, and although it was super ugly and dirty, dented, missing carry handle and all its buttons, the speed controls worked great as long as a screwdriver was nearby, and it was mighty morphin powerful! But was it loud! People who have bought this model 9166, complain about its loudness (and it is loud) have no idea how loud those old metal box fans used to be unless they owned them; but by comparison this baby is nearly silent. However, this fan doesn't begin to compare to anything on the market today, especially something that could be picked up at a local big box store for a comparable price or less.I purchased this fan in May 2016 on the recommendation of my father who has been happily using his similar Air King model (version previous to this) for the last 10-12 years without incident yearly from mid-Spring through early Autumn. Prior to buying I read every single 1-3 star review and agonized for days over the decision to blow $150 on a fan! A fan! (I really wanted to blow that money on a new pair of Birkies!) When it all came down to taking the plunge, I realized I needed either three window fans for three different rooms or one really good house fan. The Air King 9166 won and I haven't looked back. The ONLY thing I don't appreciate about this is the noise, but it's only 25 feet away in basically the same room and I can always hear the stereo or TV which aren't ever blasting or even near to 1/4 of full volume. Not bad.I have noticed many comments regarding the fan shaking or vibrating walls and floors; I haven't had either problem in the two seasons or 10 months of operation. My home is a 2,100 sq. ft. tri-level and this fan cools the main and upper levels down nicely in the evenings, which is when I run it most often. Rarely do I ever utilize any settings other than Low/Exhaust as they are perfectly capable of making the house comfortable within 15-20 minutes. By "perfectly comfortable" I am referring to making the inside temperature just as comfortable as the temperature outside. Twice I've run the fan on the Medium/Exhaust controls due to my own impatience, and as one might expect the noise level to increase to some degree it wasn't discernible nearly as much as one might think. One time I turned it on the High/Intake settings which sent a month of filing and the contents of a standard filing cabinet drawer flying across the dining room, sailing on into the living room and smack into the bay window. So, yeah, high/intake...No. Not necessary.While I don't feel as if it needs to be said, I will say it anyway: when operating the Air King fans it is absolutely imperative that the house has plenty of proper ventilation. The window the fan is installed in must be open 100%, ideally in the same room across from the fan another window should be open several inches as well as other windows around the house, especially on the same level of the home in order for the fan to function well. This fan is installed in my dining room window which is always fully open when the fan is operational. Next to the fan window is another window that I open at least 3-4 inches minimum. Across from the dining room, is a family room with three huge windows and two smaller side windows. Those smaller windows are always adequately (3-4") open during operating hours. The kitchen is next to the dining room - same thing, windows open at minimum of 3-4". The second level bedrooms, baths, sitting room always have excellent fresh air circulation. Whether its important or overkill on my part it's worth mentioning that I always wait until the fans stops (completely or nearly depends on the mood of the day) rotating once the power has been turned off before closing the window it is housed in. Additionally, when it begins to rain I cut the power on the fan and close the window, because electricity and water...um, no! If this ($150!) fan ever quits on me it will not be my fault, and especially not because I didn't something careless.People have asked whether the fan should be screwed into the window frame, and I have done just that. The window closes effortlessly behind the fan which is brilliant. No more messing about with lugging a fan in and out of the window when it rains, is too cold, or too hot, and then wondering where to put the thing. Also, no shaking, rattling or vibrations, as mentioned above. It also seems to make good sense to screw it in from a safety standpoint as this sucker isn't any lightweight piece of equipment. Final word on this screwy business, $150...for a fan.Because I run the air conditioning so much less now than I used to, I have saved on average, June-August $127 per month. Hello new Birks!Another thing to note is, absolutely yes, you want a screen down between the outside world and this fan, if you normally live with screened windows. Otherwise - bugs! I live in the woods, my fan is still in the window and we just finished up with stink bug and mammoth wolf and barn weaver spider seasons; can you imagine if the fan was open to the elements? Oh gawd just kill me...no screens...At the end of a warm, stuffy day I highly recommend the Air King 9166 for it's cooling efficiency and capabilities.

Ok, Ill try to keep this short. I have seen a lot of people complaining about how loud this fan is. I will honestly say it is not quiet. This is a great fan. Probably one of, if not the best window fan out there available today. I grew up with fans running in my bedroom, so I am perfectly fin with the noise level of this fan. Is it higher than some other fans, probably. But it is also much, much stronger of a fan, and probably moves 10 times as much air all the quieter fans. My fiance loves it and it is right above out headboard. She said the same exact thing as me, and she actually likes the sound because it drown out any other noise and makes her sleep better. And it has saved us money because we do not need to turn our air conditioner on yet. And it is almost June. I have always had to turn it on by now. It is heavier than most other window fans, but this is more like a whole house fan really. And it is quieter if you have enough windows open. It needs for you to have enough open for air intake, so it does not put a strain on the fan by trying to pull air when there is no air to pull. You will need a little do it yourself brains, and a little know how with some minor tools to mount it. My set up was a bit harder than most im sure, as it did not fit the window just right and had to improvise. But that was my own fault. I had to have this fan because it moved the most air and I wanted to save money on my electric bill by not running the AC as much. I even removed the steel mounting brackets and used heavy duty anchors in the wood trim around the window, and put a really nice thick rubber gasket seal all the way around it so it is air tight, and sucks some serious air through my house. Even on the lowest setting you can feel air moving around the first floor, and it is in a second floor window. And put this sucker on the high setting, and there is a breeze coming in all the windows. Its great! It moves so much air that if you let the door get too close it will suck it shut! So if you can handle fan noise, and wont complain when you know it is a high power fan that moves some serious air, then this is for you. If you want a very quiet window fan, then by one of those cheapos that barely move any air at all, and you will be happy with how quiet it is. But then you will not be happy because they move 1/10th the amount of air this one does. If you purchase this fan, knowing it moves some serious air, and has a high power motor, and is going to be louder than those cheap weak window fans, and then complain and leave bad reviews, then that is a pretty crappy thing to do. And if you are not handy at all, and cant mount it, dont complain about how hard it is to mount. Its a heavy duty whole house window fan not a 3 pound cheap piece of junk. Half of the units frame is plastic, and the other half is metal. Measure you window accurately, and read the specs to make sure it will work for you before you waste you time. Or you can modify things and make it work like I did because I had to have it. But I give it 5 stars even with the fact that it is louder than all those cheap ones. I wanted a fan that would move some serious air and this is probably one of the last ones that you can buy of this quality. Now you can look it up on youtube and find some pretty strange guys doing reviews on it and testing it in animal costumes, but they actually really knew about fans and gave it 5 stars also. I almost forgot. The fact that it has low, medium, and high, and even better that it can exhaust air out of the house, or you can just twist the switch the opposite direction and the fan will run in reverse and pull air straight into the house without turning the fan around, also with low medium and high.Buy it.