Marinco Solar Powered and Passive Vents

This product exceeded my expectations for air flow. We had two solar vents installed on out sail boat, a 26 foot one. With the solar vents failing to do their job, I though of switching to passive vents that fit in the same hole size. These fit fabulously, but the 3" ring that I bought sepperately did not. It was to wide, and this unit did not sit well within it either. (Part # Nicro N10866) So I used some GE silicone to put it onto the outside of the boat, and used the provided screws to adhere it to the top. No issues, not warping, and great seal, no water coming in. After replacing it, the next day, the smell of mildew was almost non-existent, temperatures improved dramatically, being more realistic with outside temps. It used to be a hot box in the cabin, not anymore.

I gave it one star because zero isn’t an option.. I thought this was a good vent from the reviews I read but it has an anemic fan with barely noticeable air movement in or out. The light is useful in complete darkness but also pretty weak.The installation instructions are worthless. Had to watch a few YouTube videos before figuring out how to best install it; but not too sure it won’t leak in weather or with green water over the bow even with the vent closed.I thought It would be good to keep air flowing when the hatches were closed.. It may be useful to vent out hot air in summer but after installing it, I wish I’d saved my money.

I'm not sure why folks complain so much about this fan. If you can't figure out how to install this thing from the included instructions, you probably ought to have someone else do it for you. Come on, it's not that hard and most of it is intuitive anyway. Also, this thing isn't an exhaust fan, not designed to suck up cats and other small animals; it's just to keep some air movement in the boat (well, that's where I'm using it). Granted, the light isn't much, but I didn't buy it for that. Actually, it adds a little bit of light in the darkest part of my cabin, right over the head. It's been going strong for several months. Will it last for a really long time? Probably not and I wish it was less expensive, but there aren't many alternatives.

Install went quite easily using butyl rubber to seal between the deck and the fan - three screws and you're done.On the inside, there's a removable cover that will keep out 100% of the insects, but also blocks up the airflow quite a bit, since we've got other (larger) insect entry points anyway, I've been leaving ours off with no issues. No leaks, exhausts a good amount of air when the sun is shining, seems simple enough - hoping it lasts many years.

I have 5 solar vents on my boat. One of them, with the battery removed, continues to work after 20 years. The newer models have not done as well, lasting less than 5 years each. However, I have learned to repair and rebuild them. The batteries quit 1st. So, I remove them, and then they only work during daylight, however, when the solar panels are new, they produce too much power and burn out the motors after a while. I found a suitable long shaft motor (which is not an exact fit, but a handyman can make it work). You must add a 1 ohm (or more) resistor in series with the motor and solar panel to avoid burning out the motor. If you replace the batteries, adding the resistor is not necessary. So, protect your investment by rebuilding the broken ones. They want you to spend hundreds on new ones, but that is criminal (and bad for the environment). All of my vents are stainless steel. They have minor rust, but otherwise remain in good condition. My cruising sailboat remains in salt water (except for the occasional haul out) with rain water baths.

Bought this to place in the Vbirth on my sailboat.I had a 4" access plate already and just removed the lid and used 3m 5200 sealer to glue this vent in place, no screwing thru the deck required. If the weather gets bad enough that the water over the bow ripps this off I imagine I will be pretty close to doomed anyway.. :)Love the vent. Not only does it allow air circulation the frosted window allows light up in the bow. The bowels of the boat seem less dank and uninviting.

Works as advertised. Hasn't let in a drop of rain, even here in the soaking Pacific North-West. The clear window makes a bonus skylight as well, as more light below is always nice. Doesn't snag any lines on deck. And stays nice & secure to the fibreglass deck with nothing more than Sikaflex 291. That's right, I didn't use a single screw through the deck. Be sure to position the drain hole on the low side. I bought these with the stainless trim ring which is a great match.

Bought it at the end of September, installed it mid October and stopped working beginning of December. Do not buy

Excellent quality and the retaining bar was a great bonus

The product works but in comparison to other extractors on the market it’s better quality at a price that’s more that double.

Only works in direct sunlight not residual and is louder than I was hoping. Probably wouldn’t buy again

Installed easily. Very noisy in operation. Far louder than the cheap unit that it replaced.

Looks like a well built product, sent it back decided to get the Nicro solar powered battery backup fan