Vent Fans & Heaters
Okay, my friends, let’s first talk Vent Fans! Let me start by saying the content below is coming from my own found research when I was seeking the best one for my build along with content from Van Lifers before me that I look up to.
While there are many options for Vent Fans to choose from these are my personal recommendations that most use in their Van without feeling overwhelmed;
Maxxair 00-05100K MaxxFan
This is the Fan I bought for my Build, I love the user-friendly Keypad control! While this may not be important to everyone, this model comes with a rain cover so you never have to worry about leakage and if you’re one who enjoys listening to the rain while you sleep… this is it. This Fan includes a powerful 10-speed control and a bonus feature of reversible airflow, so you can suck the moisture out when it’s too hot or when you’re cooking! A final comment after using the Fan that I love and others commented on when comparing other brands is how silent it is, other brands (most I do believe) can be quite noisy.
Price range is totally reasonable – $377.63
Fan-Tastic Vent 807350
This Brand in general is still a great option and many users use them! I almost bought this one and I’ll get into that first – This Fan comes with a remote to select Manual or Automatic Speeds which I loved the idea of! It’s a 12 Speed Fan and the thought of simply laying in bed and not needing to get out to turn on the Fan sounded wonderful! Furthermore to the remote, it has a display thermostat to keep you informed! This fan also comes with a rain Sensor, so if you have the lid it will close automatically, however, this model doesn’t come with the cover so you will need to buy it separately, and for that reason when comparing prices and brand reputation I went with the other! But again, I would highly recommend this one!
Heaters
For those who live in a colder climate (most of the year) like I do in Western Canada or you know you’ll be traveling year-round and need a heater, please do not skip this step! Depending on the type of Van you own (Diesel or Gas) will likely depend on which Heater you purchase to install so I’ve provided two options. While I soon realized Diesel is more popular, my Transit is a Gas Tank which is where your heater will operate from so this is important haha.
In general, the two brands I recommend are Webasto or Espar;
Air Top 2000 ST
This is the one I chose based on the simple fact that I had a Gas engine and also from recommendation. While a lot of people living in a Van will store their heater under the passenger seat facing towards the back, I didn’t have the option in my van because of the pocket door/wall.
My heater is built in a cupboard that’s easy to get to by my side door, having it more in the middle provides centralized heat. I love the size of this heater and how it’s engineered to be low on maintenance and low on fuel consumption (1 Gallon of fuel in a 22 hour period).
It comes with a simple on/off dial, leaving no time at all for it to heat up and it’s a matter of turning it to what feels comfortable to you and leaving it there!!
Espar S2-D2L
This heater is meant for the Diesel Fuel Vans! It’s very similar to the Wedasto heaters with a few minor differences. This heater has an automatic altitude adjustment up to 3000m above sea level whereas the Webasto 2000 must be done manually, it comes with real-time temperature monitoring and an EasyStart Pro Timer so you don’t have to worry about manually turning it on and off.
Cassandra Rae, xo
