Unfortunately, this heavy gizmo is one of the most wobbly models we tested, literally blowing itself into a backbend at high speeds. For a futuristic-looking fan, it still has the old-school lasko pedestal fans oscillation knob on the unit, with no button to control it remotely. It chirps loudly and obnoxiously with every setting change, and though the lights dim, they never turn off.
Lasko has been a household name since Henry Lasko founded the company in Philadelphia in 1906. It’s adapted to suit the changing face of the nation, expanding its appliance offerings and adding the high-tech features modern consumers expect. While many of Lasko’s fans are still made from metal, its collection now features high-quality, affordable plastic products. Despite these changes, Lasko hasn’t strayed from its commitment to producing superior appliances you can trust.
They are not designed for use at workstations or in elevated spaces; instead, desk fans are available. Otherwise, it may fall over, damaging the fan and possibly injuring you. It all boils down to where you’ll be using the fan and whether you want direct or indirect airflow.
While a pedestal fan isn’t as easy to slip into your decor as a tower, it gives you better coverage in larger rooms since the blades clear your furniture. The Rowenta Turbo Silence Extreme VU5670 was the sturdiest, best built and easiest to adjust of the pedestal fans we tested, and with the tallest extension, it should be more usable in larger spaces than the other towers. A tower fan gives you great cooling performance with a small footprint, so it’s easy to place in a living room, in a bedroom or anywhere you’d prefer to tuck an appliance out of the way.
The Lasko Cyclone and Rowenta Turbo Silence are both noticeably larger than the competition, in base and head size, as well as the overall presence in a room. Pedestal fans can be fan-tastic in your home, but their unique shapes can also make them more challenging to Tetris into your space. Pay attention not just to the fan head’s size, but also to the size and shape of the base. Many have solid bases that can be difficult to squeeze into smaller spaces, but a few have legs that may more easily conform to your needs. Though the Pelonis Silent Turbo doesn’t offer the high rate of flow that many others do, it does have a wide range of lower speeds.
To test the fans, we unboxed, assembled and ran the fans for hours while we were sleeping, reading and writing in the room. We took notes on ease of setup, design and features, customization, performance, energy efficiency, noise level, battery, warranty, user manual, ease of cleaning, price and more. A floor fan is easy to place almost anywhere, making it great to have on hand to cool a space like a kitchen, office or bath when needed.