With mild weather and the first heatwave of the year signaling a hot summer to come, it’s the best time for me Vonhos 16” Pedestal Fan by its motion.
I’ve been testing different models in my own home from a whole range of brands and price points so I can help you choose. Best fan for your home.
This time, it offers a budget-friendly pedestal fan from VonHaus. But can this affordable option stand up to its more expensive competitors?
In short
(Image credit: Future plc/ Sarah Handley)
If you want a pedestal fan and are on a tight budget, the Vonhaus 16” Pedestal Fan is worth checking out. It’s great if you prefer a taller fan (it’s the tallest fan I’ve tested with a maximum height of 128cm), and it offers a decent range of wind speeds, from very light to more significant winds. If you can find some wind speed fans To be very strong, then its lower speed settings would be up your street. Besides being really comfortable on the skin and not drying out your eyes, the lower speed settings are pleasantly quiet.
But if power is what you’re after, then you may be disappointed. Even out of 24 wind speeds, its top speed is similar to the middle speed of other fans with a more premium price tag that I’ve tested. With a more affordable price, you may also have to compromise when it comes to fan speeds. This isn’t a problem if you’re not bothered by noise, but if you are, this could be a deal breaker.
vonhaus
16” Pedestal Fan
This budget-friendly vonhaus fan is less powerful than other fans I’ve tested, which will suit those uncomfortable with high wind speeds.
Sarah Handley
In addition to being Ideal Home’s renovation editor, I also oversee all of the website’s heating and cooling content, which means I’m well-versed in what it takes to keep your home at a comfortable temperature year-round and how you can do it in the most energy efficient way possible. I tested the Vonhaus 16” pedestal fan daily for over three weeks in my 1970s three-bed home. As well as trying it out in my kitchen diner to see how well it performed in a larger space and in my living room, I used it in my bedroom every night. Learn more about how we test fans.
specification
- Fan Type: Pedestal
- RRP: £64.99
- Weight: 5.4 kg
- Dimensions (W x H x D): 42 x 110-128 x 42 cm
- Wattage: 30W
- Wind Speed (m/sec): 0.8-3.7m/s
- Running cost per hour (Based on energy price cap at time of writing): 0.74p/hour
- Number of fan speed settings: 24
- Noise in dB: 37-81dB
- Smart Features: N/A
- Dual Functionality: no one
- Oscillation: Horizontal (80°), Manual Vertical Tilt (+7/-15°)
Unboxing, setup and first impressions
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The Vonhaus 16” Pedestal Fan arrived in a cardboard box, with the pieces wrapped in recyclable plastic and molded cardboard forms.
There is a bit of assembly required (you’ll need a bit of a screwdriver), which was mostly manageable, but I found the instructions for assembling the fan head a little confusing. However, with a little trial and error, I managed to get it together. Overall it took me less than 10 minutes to assemble the fan.
Once put together, I just need to plug it in and then it’s ready to go.
My first impression on the look was that this was taller than other fans I tested, which I liked (this could be the fact that I’m quite tall myself, but my friend recently explained to me that she needs to invest in a new fan for her daughter who has a raised bed and the existing fan means she doesn’t see any use for it). I also noticed that the fan blades were transparent, which I had not seen before.
What is it like to use?
(Image credit: Future plc/ Sarah Handley)
The Vonhaus 16” Pedestal Fan is very intuitive to use with on-board controls or a simple remote control. By default the fan speed starts at 10 (of 24) which you can easily adjust using the plus and minus buttons on the remote or by repeatedly pressing the wind icon on the fan itself. I found the remote easier to use because you can cycle the wind speed up or down, whereas the control panel only allows you to cycle up.
The modes I like range from Comfort (which maintains a constant wind speed), Natural (which changes the wind speed to mimic a natural wind), and Night Mode (which slowly reduces the speed as you sleep). You can select this on the remote control or control panel, and there’s a small icon to indicate which mode you’re in.
(Image credit: Future plc/ Sarah Handley)
The fan has a total of 24 wind speeds, ranging from ultra-gentle (which will appeal to those who struggle with fans being too powerful) – speed 1 is actually very gentle, so much so that it didn’t register on my anemometer (which measures wind speed), but I could feel the gentle flutter of air on my skin. According to my reading, the speed varies between 2 and 24 at 0.8-3.7 meters per second. By default, the fan always starts at speed 10 when you turn it on, which is a nice gentle breeze. Lower speed settings will be ideal for people who find high wind speeds uncomfortable.
With so many wind speeds, I found it really handy that there are two buttons on the remote that let you go to mid-point (speed 15) and top speed (24) instead of increasing the levels one by one.
(Image credit: Future plc/ Sarah Handley)
However, as you increase the speed, the fan gets noisier, and when you reach top speed, it’s definitely louder than other fans I’ve tested. I clocked it at 81dB at top speed which my decibel meter says is equivalent to a noisy street, so I definitely didn’t use this setting when using it at night. In fact, even in the HeatWave, I rarely used the top speed setting, as I have other fans that have faster top speeds at quieter noise levels. Similarly, while Natural mode sounds lovely, you can hear the motor speed up and ease off as the wind speed changes, which wasn’t a problem when I was watching TV or listening to music, but was noticeable when I was working and no other sounds were playing.
I tried this fan in different room sizes (from my 12m2 bedroom to my 21m2 kitchen diner), and even though it has a large fan head, I’d say it’s best in medium sized rooms. Something more compact, or even one The best desk fans May be better in small rooms that are short on floor space. While using this fan in my kitchen diner, I placed it at one end of the room and stood at the other (about 5 meters away) to see how it felt. At top speed, I could only feel a slight breeze, so I would definitely say you need to be within 3.5 meters to feel the benefit of the breeze this fan creates.
In terms of oscillation, the Vonhaus 16” pedestal fan can oscillate from side to side, allowing it to circulate more air, but any vertical movement is manual. Fortunately, it is very easy to tilt the fan head to your preferred position.
When it comes to portability, it is certainly possible to move this fan around the house with you, but doing so at its full height is a bit cumbersome. I would adjust it to its lowest height before going up and down the stairs. However, if you are much shorter than me (I’m 5’10”), this can be a little difficult.
Running costs
At 30W, and like most fans, this fan won’t cost you a fortune to run. Based on the energy price cap of 24.67p per kWh of electricity on April 26, which was at the time of writing this review, the Vonhaus 16” pedestal fan will cost you 0.74p per hour to run.
Cleaning and maintenance
Regular dusting with a dry cloth will keep this fan in good working order, and you can disassemble the fan head if dust starts to accumulate on the blades. I would also say that it is worth holding on to the box to store the fan during the winter months to avoid any accidental damage.
Who should buy this fan?
If your primary needs are for a tall pedestal fan with a gentle breeze for an affordable price, the Vonhaus 16” Pedestal Fan can certainly fit the bill. While it has an RRP of £64.99, I’ve seen it on sale for under £50, which might make your decision stronger.
However, if you can stretch your budget a little further, then Silentnight Airmax Pro360 Pedestal Fan Quieter and more powerful with multidirectional oscillation, but still under £100.
If sheer wind speed is what you’re after, then so be it Aircraft LUME fan It’s the most powerful I’ve tested, reaching a top speed of 5.3m/s. It’s also quiet and comes with an integrated ambient backlight. However those features come at a high price — LUME has an RRP of £149. This Meaco Sefte 10” Pedestal Air Circulator (which I crowned the best fan overall in our round-up) comes in a very close second at 5.2m/s.
For an ultra-quiet fan that is ideal for bedrooms Duke’s Whisper 3 Lives up to its name and is whisper-quiet. Or you can choose the smart version Dukes Whisper Flex 2Which you can operate from your smartphone.
