Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
A comparison of 2 Lakewood Kool Operator fans, one from the 1990s and the other from the 2000s.
The older unit uses a shaded pole motor and 7-wing blade, while the newer unit uses a PSC motor and Lakewood's infamous 5-wing Brace Blade. I think the guts are similar, if not identical, to what was being put in the box fan for the last few years of Lakewood's operation.
These units were overall a pleasant surprise. I've tested the newer one briefly and thought it was OK, but was never particularly impressed with the older one, especially with the 200 wats power consumption. While the newer unit does draw half the power, interestingly enough, it's not really any more efficient than the old one in regards of CFM movement per watt. Both of the units are particularly inefficient at only around 4 CFM/watt.
The CFM ratings need to be taken with a grain of salt. I'm using it as a comparative calculation as it's something relevant, insightful, and quantifiable, but the volume of air moved doesn't determine how well the fan performs in regards to moving air around a room or how comfortable it will make you feel in a given use case.
I was thoroughly impressed with how well the air stream carries from these units. Neither are particularly high velocity, but the air moved remains in a good tunnel and doesn't loose much velocity as it travels away from the fan. Both of these units were very effective at circulating all the air in the room; you could feel air moving almost anywhere when these were running on high. The CFM movement was relatively low compared to other similarly styled fans, yet the air circulation in the room was unmatched.
Despite there not being much of any difference in efficiency in regards to CFM/watt, the newer unit draws about half the power as the old one and works just about as well. It costs a fraction to run and accomplishes about the same task. If operating on a budget in an area where electricity costs are high, I maintain my position that the older unit's shaded pole motor is ridiculous and should have been PSC like the newer one.
I think these are both excellent performing fans, though my concerns of the cost of operation for the older one definitely remain.
A comparison of 2 Lakewood Kool Operator fans, one from the 1990s and the other from the 2000s.
The older unit uses a shaded pole motor and 7-wing blade, while the newer unit uses a PSC motor and Lakewood's infamous 5-wing Brace Blade. I think the guts are similar, if not identical, to what was being put in the box fan for the last few years of Lakewood's operation.
These units were overall a pleasant surprise. I've tested the newer one briefly and thought it was OK, but was never particularly impressed with the older one, especially with the 200 wats power consumption. While the newer unit does draw half the power, interestingly enough, it's not really any more efficient than the old one in regards of CFM movement per watt. Both of the units are particularly inefficient at only around 4 CFM/watt.
The CFM ratings need to be taken with a grain of salt. I'm using it as a comparative calculation as it's something relevant, insightful, and quantifiable, but the volume of air moved doesn't determine how well the fan performs in regards to moving air around a room or how comfortable it will make you feel in a given use case.
I was thoroughly impressed with how well the air stream carries from these units. Neither are particularly high velocity, but the air moved remains in a good tunnel and doesn't loose much velocity as it travels away from the fan. Both of these units were very effective at circulating all the air in the room; you could feel air moving almost anywhere when these were running on high. The CFM movement was relatively low compared to other similarly styled fans, yet the air circulation in the room was unmatched.
Despite there not being much of any difference in efficiency in regards to CFM/watt, the newer unit draws about half the power as the old one and works just about as well. It costs a fraction to run and accomplishes about the same task. If operating on a budget in an area where electricity costs are high, I maintain my position that the older unit's shaded pole motor is ridiculous and should have been PSC like the newer one.
I think these are both excellent performing fans, though my concerns of the cost of operation for the older one definitely remain.
