Best Outdoor Ceiling Fans for 2019
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Summary of Best Outdoor Ceiling Fans by Brand and Performance
Top 7 Best by Brand
There are many good name brand fans, and there are many brands that are not so good. We are not here to pick on the bad ones, but rather let's list the really good ones, based on their overall outdoor friendliness.
Top 7 by Performance Per Size Category
Performance is what we feel is the most important thing to keep in mind when selecting an outdoor ceiling fan. All of the name brands above are really good quality, but if you want your new outdoor ceiling fan to keep you cool, then this is the rankings list for you.
EXTRA LARGE FANS (72" AND UP)
BIG 60" to 70" FANS
STANDARD SIZE 52" to 59" FANS
SMALL FANS LESS THAN 50"
How We Came to Our Conclusions
We know ceiling fans. That's all we have done for 40 years. But still, we dug in even deeper than what we thought we already knew, to give you the most comprehensive and informative article about outdoor ceiling fans than you'll find anywhere online. We studied name brands we sell, and name brands we do not. We looked at the max airflow ratings of fans in every size. It took a while, but again, fans are what we do, and we love bringing this kind of knowledge to you. So, without further ado, here are the details of how we came to these decisions.
Best Overall Name Brand for the Exterior
Although there are many excellent quality ceiling fans for exterior use from name brands such as TroposAir, Minka Aire, Gulf Coast Fans, Fanimation, and Casablanca, we have to give the best overall award to Modern Forms.
We are not implying every Modern Forms fan is better than every fan from the other brands, but how could we not choose this brand when every single ceiling fan they offer is UL listed for outdoor wet locations? It makes choosing your new outdoor fan easy when the answer to any question you may have about whether or not a fan will work in your locations is… YES! We don’t understand why every fan company doesn’t simply seal their fans better, and use the Modern Forms philosophy of making all fans wet rated so they can all be used in any location, wet, damp, or dry.
Not only is every single Modern Forms ceiling fan approved for wet locations, but Modern Forms uses aluminum motor housings for most models, instead of the steel ones that some of the lesser quality manufacturers, found at the big home deprovement centers, are still using. You’ll be lucky to get four to five years before a fan with a steel housing begins to rust in humid environments, and maybe a year near coastal areas. The use of aluminum housings increases the cosmetic beauty of a ceiling fan for many more years, if not forever, because aluminum will not rust.
The other reason we rate Modern Forms fans as the best overall brand in outdoor ceiling fans is because of their “cool factor”. Yes, their fans move a lot of airflow to keep you cool, but that is not what we are talking about. The cool factor with Modern Forms is the way you control each and every one of their fans. They all come with a full-function, 6-speed wall control switch, but why? The reason we ask why is because every Modern Forms model is smart. Meaning, simply open up an app on any smart phone or tablet to fully control all functions of the fan, including schedules. Every model is also set up to work with today’s popular home automation, such as Echo, Nest, Google Assistant, and more. They are the first company to offer only smart fans.
Best Outdoor Ceiling Fans for Airflow
This one is the most important of all, because the more airflow a fan moves, the more cooling affect the fan will have in your outdoor living space. Unless you are only wanting a fan for its good looks, this is the single most important reason for installing an outdoor ceiling fan in the first place. Therefore, look for the highest CFM rating (cubic feet per minute).
Large Outdoor Fans (72” and up)
TroposAir Liberator - This is the best ceiling fan for airflow of any ceiling fan available, for each of the blade spans offered with this model. It comes in 3 different blade span options, 72 inch, 82 inch, and 96 inch.
The original Liberator came with 82” blades, and was tested at 15,754 CFM, which was more airflow than even 96” and 120” sized ceiling fans. That held true until April of 2019, when a 96” blade span became available for the Liberator. The 96” version produces nearly 17,000 CFM of airflow, or 2300 more CFMs than the next best 96 inch ceiling fan available. To make things sweeter, the 96” Liberator is less expensive than its closest two rivals in the same size.
TroposAir Titan II - This is a more affordable model compared to most other high-end name brand ceiling fans. While not quite the performance of the Liberator, the Titan II still outperforms any other large outdoor ceiling fan, by every single manufacturer, in each of its 3 size choices, and it does it more efficiently. This fan has one of the most energy efficient DC motors we have ever seen, so much so that even the 84 inch version uses less energy than a nightlight bulb when the fan is operating at its low speed.
The Titan II is available in 66 inch, 72 inch, and 84 inch blade spans.
60 Inch to 70 Inch Sizes
In this size class, the winner for most airflow goes to another TroposAir ceiling fan, the 60” Vogue and Vogue Plus. Rated at 9,845 CFM, nothing else we’ve found comes close.
The difference between the Vogue and the Vogue Plus is that the Vogue does not have a light, and the Vogue Plus comes with a LED light fixture. Both fans use the same super performance DC motor, for extreme power and energy efficiency.
The closest fans in performance numbers to the two Vogue models we could find are the 65” Minka Aire Extreme H20, the 60” Fanimation Drone, and two fans from Modern Forms, the 60” Woody, and the 60” Windflower. Each of those fans is between 8,840 to 9,092 CFM of airflow.
50 Inch to 59 Inch Fans
Believe it or not, it is yet another fan by TroposAir leading the way… again! We promise, we are not writing this article in an attempt to promote this one brand, it’s just that facts are facts. TroposAir is either making our job at ModernFanOutlet.com in writing this article easy, or making it boring. It’s even beginning to make us rethink on which brand is the best overall for outdoor use.
Anyways, back to the point, the best fan for this size blade span is the TroposAir 56” Tornado. The 56” Tornado ceiling fan produces an amazing 9,154 CFM on high speed. That is more airflow than any other outdoor fan we are aware of up to 70 inches in size, with exception to TroposAir’s own Vogue model.
The Tornado ceiling fan is available in 3 finishes: Pure White, Oil Rubbed Bronze, and more expensive option, 316 Marine Grade Stainless Steel (it will neither rust nor corrode). If you happen to have a larger area, it also comes as a 72” size, starting at only $259.99. And yes, the 72” version does outperform the 56” one.
The next best fan for the most airflow below 60 inch blade spans is the Gulf-Coast 52” Coastal Air DC ceiling fan. It’s pretty close to the Tornado’s airflow output, coming in at 8,913 cubic feet per minute. This outdoor fan is an excellent choice if you’re looking for something in a smaller size that will still blow a lot of air. Plus, because it has a DC motor, it is more energy efficient than normal fans, and comes with a 6-speed remote control included. To Gulf-Coast Fan’s credit, the 52” Coastal Air is the highest performance 52” exterior ceiling fan that has ever been designed.
There are several other outdoor models from Gulf-Coast, Minka Aire, Fanimation, and Modern Forms that move cubic feet per minute ratings in the ranges of 7,000 to 8,500. Surprisingly, Casablanca Fan Company, although good quality, does not have anything to compete with these type of numbers to help keep you cool while outside. And Hunter, well, that’s a whole different story. Let’s just say high-performance ceiling fans aren’t their forte these days.
Best Performance Under 50 Inches
When it comes to smaller fans it’s tough to find outdoor models that actually blow enough airflow, even for small spaces to really do much good during the hot summer months. Most are only in the 2,000 to 4,000 CFM range. That said, there are a few we found that should be able to do the job.
Gulf-Coast offers most of their 52 inch ceiling fan models with 44 inch blades. In a sense it’s cheating a bit, because you’ll be getting a 52 inch motor with lighter and shorter blade spans. This means the fan will spin much faster on each speed and the blades are wider, thus creating nearly the same airflow with 44 inch blade spans as they would with the 52’s.
Besides Gulf-Coast Fans ingenious idea of putting 44” blades on 52” motors, the most powerful fan below 50 inches is the Fanimation Wrap. The Wrap ceiling fan comes in either a 44” or a 48” blade span. The 44” model moves 5,597 CFM, while the 48” model comes in at 5,839.
Next is the Fanimation Triaire ceiling fan. Just like the Wrap, the Triaire is avaiable in both 44” and 48” sizes. The 48 inch version moves 5,577 CFM, while the 44 inch comes just shy of hitting the 5k mark. It is rated at 4,909 CFM.
Then there is the Minka Aire Simple. In our opinion the Simple is the coolest styled 44” ceiling fans around. It is true to its name, having one of the most minimalistic designs of all. It’s motor is so tiny, yet so powerful. With just 3 streamlined blades protruding from the center, this fan moves 5,323 CFM of airflow. Better yet, the shape of the 3 blades causes the air to spread better than ordinary fan blades do, meaning it’ll make you feel cooler further away from the fan.
Modern Forms offers 2 small fans that top the 5,000 CFM mark. One is the 44” Aloft, which produces 5,183 CFM. The other has to be the Eight Wonder of the World. The Modern Forms Elf has only a 38” blade span, yet somehow manages to produce 5,257 cubic feet per minute of airflow. We’re not really sure how Modern Forms achieved that feat, but, for our customers looking for an outdoor ceiling fan for a very small area, we will take it.
Most Durable Housing Materials
316 grade stainless steel is our first choice. It is the best grade of stainless, thus more expensive. Therefore, until recently no ceiling fan manufacturer used it. Finally, TroposAir and Modern Forms both offered up two models made in this most durable metal. TroposAir offers both their 56” and 72” sized Tornado ceiling fans in this finish, while Modern Forms offers their Wynd ceiling fan, in 42” and 52” blade spans, constructed of this marine grade stainless.
Next would be ABS plastic. Although many outdoor ceiling fans have blades constructed of ABS, not many have motor housings constructed of the same material. It would make a lot of sense, since high grade ABS plastic is nearly indestructible. However, making fan motor housings using this material offers the challenge of making it look plasticky. The only company that we’ve found that has used plastic motor housings, and has been able to do it right, is Gulf-Coast. They offer two models with this non-corroding material, and those are the Coastal Air and the Centurion. The best part, once installed, the fans look like any other high quality ceiling fan, and they do not look like the motors are housed in ABS at all.
Aluminum is a great metal for outdoor ceiling fans, because it will not rust. Technically, aluminum can corrode, but it isn’t a deteriorating corrosion like you may be thinking of. Aluminum corrosion is known as oxidation. Aluminum oxide is a hard, thin layer that actually protects the metal from the ugly, harmful corrosion we often think of when we see steel rusting. This is one of the reasons we rated Modern Forms as the best overall brand for an outdoor ceiling fan. We mainly did this because of their durability over time, and not necessarily saying their motors are better than other high-end brands.
Galvanized steel, with special anti-corrosion paint processes is also a good choice for many areas. For most people in the USA, galvanized steel is a good, safe bet, but if you’re one of the lucky ones building a beachfront home, then think of spending a little more money and go with the 316 grade stainless or the aluminum motor housings.
When to Choose Wet Rated vs. Damp
Many people get hung up on thinking a wet rated outdoor fan is better than a damp rated one. However, the wet rating is only needed if the area you'll be hanging your fan has no roof overhead. Therefore, if you'll be installing your new ceiling fan in any location that is covered by a roof, then you do not need to look for a wet rated outdoor fan.
A wet rating also has nothing to do with how long the fan's finish will be able to withstand the elements. Need proof? The 56 inch and the 72 inch Tornado, in 316 grade stainless steel, only has the damp rating.
The Final Verdict
If your outdoor area is covered by a roof you will only need a damp rated ceiling fan, but a wet rated model will be okay for you too. Basically, just shop for any outdoor fan you like and you will be fine with any one you choose.
If the outside space you are trying to keep cool does not have a roof overhead, such as a pergola, you are going to have to make sure the fan you buy is outdoor wet rated. A damp rated model will not be good enough for your needs in such a location.
If you choose from any of the name brands listed in our Top 7 Best by Brand list, you will love your new weather resistant ceiling fan for many years to come. They are some great brands, and they stand behind their product.
If you are like most people, and are looking for the best fan to keep you feeling the coolest all summer long, then be sure to look for a fan with the highest cubic feet per minute number available in the size you need. The higher that number, the better the wind-chill factor will be for keeping you comfy on hot days and nights, while enjoying your outdoor living area. As you’ve probably learned from this blog post, when looking for shear performance, with a good amount of style to boot, TroposAir seems to be a good brand to go with.
Name Brand Ceiling Fans at Modern Fan Outlet
Ceiling Fans by Design Categories
| MODERN OUTDOOR TRADITIONAL SMALL |
LARGE NAUTICAL ORNATE KIDS |
TROPICAL DOUBLE MOTOR ORNATE CLEARANCE |
FANS WITH LIGHTS RUSTIC MISSION |
