Elicient vs. Vortex

[sneakyninja]

Trying to decide between these 2 inline's. Can't find anywhere that sells the polymer elicient after several google searches.

The consensus seems to be that the elicient is quietest, but, how much louder is the vortex considering its nearly $200 a piece cheaper (12" version) i'm tempted to go with that but am having trouble making up my mind whether the extra $700 (3 12's and an 8) is worth it.

 

[Wedge Antilles]

good thread!!! Ive just started doing alot of reseach on this as well, and there are a bunch of threads on here about the topic of inline fans......ellicent's are a tad more $$, but everyone says they are virtully silent.....heard mixed on the vortex......i dont think the 12" vortexs come with a plug, i could be wrong though....i will be watching this closely as well!!

 

[THCV]

12"? they all sound like jet engines. i have a vortex 10" and it sounds like it is ready to take off. i have it in the attic above the room which helps a lot, but i really doubt there is a 12" that can be considered quiet in any real way. even the 8"s make plenty of noise if you are in the room with them; i have a fantech xl and a 2 vortex 8s, and they are both about the same sound level, but the vortex has higher cfm. i say vortex. never had a problem with them, although i did buy one that was out of balance, but the store replaced it same day.

 

[FunkBomb]

Vortex fans are a little louder and move more air. They also come with 10 year warranties which is the reason I got mine

-Funk

 

[Guest]

What about ValuLine inline fans? Are they as good as Vortex like these guys are claiming?

http://cgi.ebay.com/6-Inline-Duct-F...0785920QQihZ014QQcategoryZ43555QQcmdZViewItem

 

[Rolling Bones]

My elicient is super quiet. its worth the $ if noise is an issue.

 

[Guest]

I'll use Vortex 4 and 6" for most applications, except where noise is a possible issue, but only Elicent for anything larger. One reason Vortex are louder is they move more air through a similar sized housing than an Elicent. I'm pretty sure an Elicent is rated for 100,000 hours (?) which is about 11 years of continual use. I think they're the best overall...even if they flow a bit less than a Vortex.

 

[BlindDate]

Ebay has the best prices for Elicent

 

[FreezerBoy]

I have a 4" Elicent. Right out of the box, you could hear it across the street. Triple silenced with muffler, speed control and fan isolation box, it's still loud enough to demand explanation. It's destroyed all sense of stealth. I can't let anyone in my garage anymore because there's nothing to explain the noise other than the truth, which I don't care to share with my neighbors.

At 12 inches, it doesn't sound like you're doing a micro/stealth grow. Do you NEED quiet or do you just want quiet? Move it outside the room or keep the room under lock and key.

 

[Strawberrycough]

Vortex fans are super quite..compared to my Can Fan. I havent tried Elicent ... Here is my friends website for Vortex fans:

http://www.greengoldhydro.com/index.php?cName=inline-fans-wall-fans-vortex-powerfans

 

[SmokeyTheDuck]

I picked up a FanTech FX 12XL and am happy with it. For a 12" inline fan, it only pushes 801 CFM, but performs the task very well. I'm happy with the construction of the unit. I cannot say it is quiet in the least when on full blast; I have it hooked up to a Speedster fan controller and thermostat and the fan never gets above a low hum. I am fortunate and was able to install the fan under my house, which reduces the noise significantly.

For the interested, this one fan is cooling 4 Cool Sun XLs with about 75' of 8" ducting and a 3' tall 8"OD/6"ID home made carbon filter.

EDIT: I forgot to include the reason why I bought this fan... I got it on sale at my local grow shop for $200. Retail was $550.

 

[sneakyninja]

I need it to be quiet enough that people can walk around the rest of the building the grow site is in without knowing that it is there. I plan on putting in a drop ceiling and using the thickest, sound proof panels in the ceiling. I'm also going with insulated ducting, and going to put the fan in a sound reducing box attatched via bungee's.

 

[ogenko]

they have these solar and palau's working on display at my local shop

they seem really smooth and quiet
=======================================
i have one of these 6" eclipses
moves a lot of air but noisy
not very good mounting options
and lame flange design where it connects to the ducting

not a fan i can recommend

 

[rootfingers]

I vote elicent, but in all honesty since I bought my first one (on a recommendation from a member of this site) I have not bought anything but elicent since. I haven't switched because my elicent in-lines are always powerful enough to get the job done, and they have been quiet enough for me.

One thing I have noticed though is that once you move past the 6" models to the 8" they are gonna make some real noise just from wooshing air. Almost nothing from the fan motors though.

 

[Guest]

I have a 4" Elicent. Right out of the box, you could hear it across the street. Triple silenced with muffler, speed control and fan isolation box, it's still loud enough to demand explanation.

I'm really surprised about this...doesn't sound...lol...right at all. I've bought and installed 4" Elicents and they were very quiet and yes I've handled some 4" Vortex's as well.

I had a friend install a 12" Vortex and had huge noise/reverberation issues and once he put in an Elicent all was good. I love those Italian fans

 

[FreezerBoy]

I'm not talking about bleeding ears, simply a sound that doesn't belong. Like catching a whiff of smoke, you want to know where it's coming from. It raises curiosity. It can't be heard over the washing machine, dryer or power tools but, who runs these things all day long?

As long as I keep people out of the garage, I'm OK. I've opened the door a couple of times to find myself surrounded by an impromptu neighborfest in my driveway. I met my new next door neighbors this way, one at a time. Each asked if I had a cat. Asked why they asked, the little boy pointed to a bag of kitty litter I keep for oil spills. People are curious and an inline will definately flip their curiosity switch.

 

[Old Yeller]

Do a search on Panasonic bathroom exhaust fans - can't remember the thread I read but their stuff is supposed to be super quiet - runnin panasonic 4 Panaflows inside my computer and the're real quiet.

 

[Guest]

FreezerBoy - yes the 4" Elicents make some noise but out of all the fans I've ever used it's been the quietest. IME most noise comes from the volume of air moved in relation to the housing size and is on the intake side mainly. Those Vortex 6"ers sound like a jet engine when starting up and was able to muffle the intake with a simple home made baffle.

It's hard to talk about noise levels as I can't hear what you're dealing with.

simply a sound that doesn't belong

I can hear...lol...that but I have to tell ya I set up a friends grow space in a basement with an 1198 Elicent exhaust fan and it blew out an attic vent pointed down onto a porch. You couldn't hear a damn thing yet if you stood in a particular spot there was a breeze you could feel...lol.

 

[globel]

MAX FAN is the shit there made by can fan. I have like 7+ fans my new max fan is the best by far. ost powerfull for the wattage quite in comarison. It blows the air straight I balence a ball ontop of mine. And the price is awsome on them CHECK OUT MAX FANS

 

[FreezerBoy]

FreezerBoy - yes the 4" Elicents make some noise but out of all the fans I've ever used it's been the quietest. IME most noise comes from the volume of air moved in relation to the housing size and is on the intake side mainly. Those Vortex 6"ers sound like a jet engine when starting up and was able to muffle the intake with a simple home made baffle.

It's hard to talk about noise levels as I can't hear what you're dealing with.


I can hear...lol...that but I have to tell ya I set up a friends grow space in a basement with an 1198 Elicent exhaust fan and it blew out an attic vent pointed down onto a porch. You couldn't hear a damn thing yet if you stood in a particular spot there was a breeze you could feel...lol.

I think it's just taking a few posts to figure out we're actually pretty much in agreement. As long as you keep people out of the room the fan is in, the noise can be muffled to an acceptable level. I just want folks to know that if you're looking for stealth (as in standing six inches from your grow cab while answering police questions about the dead body in the house) the inline is not the fan you want.