Whole House Fans: wattup with Lowe's vs. Quiet Cool or AirScape?

Question

It is HOT here in So. Cal!!! My 15 y/o Whole House Fan (the kind you install in your ceiling venting into the attic) is too loud and I wanna replace it.

Quiet Cool charges ~$1,500 to install four fans in the four bedrooms upstairs, each delivering about 1500 CFM. It is very quiet.

AirScape charges about the same, also delivering 1500 CFM.

However, Lowes or Home Depot sells a WHF for $250 for 5000 CFM. This is what I bought 15 years ago which now sounds like small plane outside my bedroom.

So can someone tell me wattup and why Quiet Cool or AirScape makes a better product than the 5000 CFM from Lowes?

Answer 1

I have a Quiet Cool fan, so I can at least comment on it.  We purchased the Quiet Giant (4500CFM) instead of the 3 or 4 1500CFM models.  It is just like you said - VERY quiet.  The reason is because the fans dont sit on the floor of the attic - they are suspended in the attic by braces.  A 6ft duct tube connects to a grill on the attic floor.  This means the actual fans are farther away from where you are standing, and there's no vibration of the fans against the attic floor.

I figured since it's going to be a fixture in the home (as opposed to something I prop up in a window), I'd much rather have something that works the way I want, rather than something I regret later.  

We like to run the fan at night and early mornings... so we wanted to make sure it's quiet.  And it is.