We have a Matthews Fan Company Vent-Bettina in our kitchen (mounted between the kitchen and LR--formerly our DR). Ours is the teak blade option, rather than the metal blades with "cage" version (available both ways), but I would imagine they function the same way.

One big difference, obviously, is how it looks. We liked it's "funky" and slightly different look--the perfect bit of "bling" for our kitchen reno!

Other difference, is how it moves the air. Typical ceiling fan moves in one plane, so the air is circulated either upward or downward in a horizantal, circular motion. With the gyroscopic fans, the fan blades are moving in a vertical plane. while the fan's "body" is rotating horizontally (clockwise), *Note, the fan blades/heads are motorized, while the body is not. The motion of the blades, head position/angle drive the fan's "body" rotation. The air is being moved by the spinning fan blades, and is circulated throughout the space by the rotation of the entire unit.

The end result is pretty much the same with both types of fans (air is being moved!), though in our application, this type of fan has the added benefit of visually "serving" both rooms. I would say it might have a bit of an edge (over a conventional fan) cooling our two adjacent spaces because of its design. We did not set up our old fan in the kitchen post-reno (after opening up the wall between the two rooms), so I don't have a true comparison.

Here is a link that might be useful: Matthews Fan Co.

This post was edited by cat_mom on Sun, Jul 13, 14 at 12:04

Thanks cat_mom. The info and link are much appreciated :-)

They look sweet, but I would be worried that they would be louder than a conventional fan.

Common wisdom for fans is that, for an equivalent CFM, a larger, slower fan will be quieter than a smaller faster fan. This drives computer case fan design, giant industrial air circulating fans, etc.

Any thoughts on noise, cat_mom?

Other than the noise, and the need for a slightly higher ceiling, they do make quite a visual impression.

At the old Gardenweb, spam like that would be deleted pretty quickly. Here, I highly doubt they'll listen to me if I hit the report button.

Our Matthews Vent Bettina is quiet. They actually run quieter, and more efficiently, as they break-in. I think we might have had a problem with one of the motor heads humming or something initially, and Matthews replaced it right away. The fan is literally virtually silent when running.

I'll accept funky as a justification, but the noise related to blade tip speed is a valid consideration for small fans, as noted above, and these rotating desk fans also look like they require more space below the ceiling, somewhat limiting their application space.

kas

As I've mentioned, there is no noise. Of course, if you run the fan on super-high, as with ANY fan, there will be a lot more air being moved, rapidly, so there will be a greater degree of air noise.

As for space, the down-rods are not only available in various lengths (I believe), but can be cut to the desired length "in the field" by the installer or homeowner. As long as you have the minimum required clearance, application space shouldn't be an issue.