Operating the MaxxAir Fan

[jd1923]

Q1: Is there a way to turn the fan off while running and keep the vent from closing?

We have this fan and remote (pics).

Q2: How do you get the screen off for cleaning. Ours has one broken tab and I don’t want to break another. Thx

[Zodd]

I am not sure about leaving it open while off. But Oliver did put out a video on cleaning it and operation. 

 

[Corvus]

Q1; On my model the only way to achieve this is to turn the fan off, which will close the cover, then turn the vent cover knob to open the cover.

Q2: Gently turn the tabs until they release the screen. Don't be surprised or alarmed if one falls out.

Edited October 26 by Corvus

[jd1923]

49 minutes ago, Corvus said:

Q1; On my model the only way to achieve this is to turn the fan off, which will close the cover, then turn the vent cover knob to open the cover.

Thank you Jerry & Kathy for both answers! I turned the tabs, why didn’t I think of that, and I have the screen out now. Thanks again.

I’m hoping for a procedure to turn off the fan without closing the vent cover. Chris wants the fan on when going to sleep where it’s just cool enough to go w/o A/C. When I wake up, middle of the night, it’s much cooler and I want to turn it OFF but keep the hood/vent open.

The motorized lever mechanism is soooo noisy late at night! I muffle the sound with a pillow on the fan, then OMG have to do that again to open the vent, no fan. I’ve got to find the procedure, or I promise I’ll pull it apart and wire a dedicated toggle switch for this simple purpose.

[Jason Foster]

On other models of this fan, the handle could be pulled down to disengage the motor.  Mine won't do that.  What you can do, is while the fan is still running, slowly turn the lever mechanism by hand to close the lid.  Turn off the fan and the motor will recognize the fan lid is closed.  Reverse the lever slowly to reopen lid.

[Mike and Carol]

I clean the screen and blade assembly after each trip.  You figured out the screeen, the blade is held on by a single set screw that comes off easily.  If we want the vent open and no fan I usually just turn the fan down all the way to 10, it hardly moves any air.  The vent is pretty noisy, once we open it it stays open.  We got down to 43 here last night, both vents open and Vornado heater providing quiet, even heat.  Mike 

[dhaig]

@jd1923, the remote control for our MaxxAir fan (2022) has 8 buttons, as does yours, but a different key arrangement than yours.  It appears to have the button functions corresponding to yours.  There is a button on my control showing an icon of an opening cover.  When I press this key, to fan cover opens, but the fan remains OFF.  

Have you tried pressing the VENT OPN/CLS button?  This may do what you want.

Regards, Don

[Geronimo John]

On 10/26/2024 at 1:48 AM, Mike and Carol said:

We got down to 43 here last night, both vents open and Vornado heater providing quiet, even heat.

Like you, we prefer not to heat with our Heat Pump and Suburban furnace for over night sleeping.  If we return to a cold Ollie, we use either the Heat Pump or Suburban to get Ollie up to a confortable temperature if circumstances allow.  But like to use electric heat from a quiet source if possible and needed.

For a replacement electric space heater I prefer smaller, lighter and safer as important considerations.  But if smaller, it still needs to get the job done as well for our sleeping time when temps are in the 40's.  

I have heard good things about the Vornado.  My old school 750/1500 watt unit does not have the safety features yours does and is larger than I would hope.  We are not camping in winter and frankly if it is 43 degrees we likely will very rarely see that temperature as well.  So your post really is helpful in my space heater quest.  I'm thinking of the smaller Vornado Heater that has only the low and medium (750 Watt) settings and all the safety features of it's big brother  (That also has a 1500 watt setting). 

What setting is needed to keep Ollie confortable in 43 degrees for overnight sleeping?  Knowing what you know now, would you recommend the smaller Vornado for those not camping in the sub 40 degree conditions who occasionally need a sleeping time electric heater?

Thanks

GJ

[jd1923]

19 hours ago, dhaig said:

Have you tried pressing the VENT OPN/CLS button?

When the lid is open, fan running, and you key the OPN/CLS button it will close the lid and the fan stays running.

@Mike and Carol thanks for the note of the fan blade. I will clean it when we get home. I’ll also study the wiring to see what can be done.

I’m not going to carry an electric heater. We have an Atwood furnace. Prior owner wrote a service complaint re noise and had OTT replace the Suburban. The mods I made, running hard ducting the first 6 ft, eliminating the under bed duct, eliminating the dual outlets and adding a return air filter has made it even quieter! We ran our furnace for a week in the high country, mornings in the 40s. It was very quiet and it only blows in kitchen and bath. The overhead fan, even on 10%, bothers me more.

[Mike and Carol]

5 hours ago, Geronimo John said:

What setting is needed to keep Ollie confortable in 43 degrees for overnight sleeping?  Knowing what you know now, would you recommend the smaller Vornado for those not camping in the sub 40 degree conditions who occasionally need a sleeping time electric heater?

Our Vornado has three settings, 750, 1150, 1500.  The lowest setting is enough for temps down into the 40’s.  We’ve used the middle setting to get things warm while camping in the 30’s.   We rarely use the 1500W setting, in the teens and 20’s it will get the trailer warmed up and then we go to one of the lower settings.  It’s got a wide base and is super stable.  It also has a switch on the bottom that shuts the unit off if it is not sitting flat.

We’ve been in the Kansas City area the last couple of nights, overnight temps near 40 when we wake up.  Using the lowest setting (750) we kept the temperature in the high 60s for sleeping.  That’s not running constantly.  I think the new ones have a digital temperature readout.  Ours just has a knob (8 years old).  If you’re not going to camp in sub freezing temps I think the small Vornado would be fine.  It’s a very quiet unit.  Mike

[topgun2]

I found the little guy below at a garage sale for $5 about 12 years ago -it measures about 6x6x6 inches.

It has a temp sensor, on/off switch and rotary switch where I can set the desired temp on the back of the unit.  Like many of these electric space heaters its maximum wattage is 1500 and it can roast me out of the Ollie if I leave it on full blast for over 30 minutes without setting the adjustable control lower.  However, I never leave it on overnight or while I'm not in the camper.

Bill

 

Edited October 28 by topgun2

[Steve Morris]

12 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:

Our Vornado has three settings, 750, 1150, 1500.  The lowest setting is enough for temps down into the 40’s.  We’ve used the middle setting to get things warm while camping in the 30’s.   We rarely use the 1500W setting, in the teens and 20’s it will get the trailer warmed up and then we go to one of the lower settings.  It’s got a wide base and is super stable.  It also has a switch on the bottom that shuts the unit off if it is not sitting flat.

We picked up the Costco-special model of the Vornado TAVH10 which is 750/1500 Watts. To make sure it worked, I stuck it in Curiosity yesterday, mid afternoon. Inside was 58 degrees and outside 55 and sunny, with no wind.  

On high, the temperature only raised 5 degrees the first hour, 6 more the second, and 3 the third, ending at 72. Seems like it wouldn’t get any warmer, even though I had the setting at 85 degrees. Kill-A-Watt showed it wasn’t using more than 1250W at the 1500W setting. 

That might work in the 30s or 40s if I use the Truma furnace to get up to temperature, but I’m not really confident in its ability for such a highly rated product. 

[topgun2]

As if they knew we were talking about heating, Long Long Honeymoon just released THIS Video that contains some additional ideas.

Bill

[Patriot]

On our recent 48 day trip we used the furnace when we needed at little heat in the mornings and it worked flawlessly. I also think it’s a real good idea to use and run the equipment you have on board. This way you will know it is operating properly. I personally don’t see any need to carry a space heater/space taker and they are not really efficient. One night during our week camping in Yellowstone the temp dropped to 28d we were toasty warm with our furnace. 

Keeping that Max Air Vent screen and fan blade clean was a regular maintenance ✅ list item especially on this last trip in the dusty dirty windy high deserts of the midwest. I think I cleaned ours twice during our recent trip and again when we arrived back home. 

 

Edited October 28 by Patriot

[Steve Morris]

1 hour ago, Patriot said:

I personally don’t see any need to carry a space heater/space taker and they are not really efficient.

Generally, I'd agree, especially as I'm cargo capacity limited. However, we're spending two months in Florida this winter, and will be plugged in most places we stay. So saving propane by using free electricity for seven weeks is appealing to me.

[jd1923]

5 hours ago, topgun2 said:

I found the little guy below at a garage sale for $5 about 12 years ago -it measures about 6x6x6 inches.

If it has a good power cord, doesn’t get hot to the touch, you’ll be good. I’ve used some old classics and usually replace the original cord with a cut-off #12 extension cord. 

[ScottyGS]

Buddy Heater Jr. and a small ceramic heater (like the Vornado).  I carry both as back up if it's going to be cold... like almost freezing cold.   The ceramic for when we are plugged in and want to save a bit on propane.   The Buddy Jr. for when we are not plugged in and the on board furnace craps out.  You will only have to spend one really cold night with a non working furnace before making sure you have a back up plan. 

Scotty 

[Geronimo John]

3 hours ago, jd1923 said:

I’ve used some old classics and usually replace the original cord with a cut-off #12 extension cord. 

Smart!  Many 1500 watt heaters do not have robust cords.  Upgrading to a 12 AWG provides typically better insulation coverage that also reduces the potential for heating from older likely crimped cords.  

[SeaDawg]

On 10/28/2024 at 5:45 PM, Geronimo John said:

 

Our 15 year old little heater has served us well. 

I'd recommend carrying one, with tip over and overheat protection,  even in Florida winter, if you will have hookups.

Very quiet, even heat.