Centrifugal fans, which are often called industrial blowers, are commonly used in industrial applications to circulate and supply air to a given area. Technically, blowers are different from typical industrial fans. Industrial fans circulate air throughout an entire space, while blowers provide a more directional, steady stream.

That’s why a blower, rather than a fan, would be used in applications that require a continuous stream of air. Inflation is one common application for blowers. For example, the nebula blower – which takes in air at its base, and supplies a steady stream of air directly upwards – is commonly used to inflate advertising sky dancers. That’s why the nebula blower is often called a sky dancer blower.

There are many different types of blowers, including portable and mounted options, and inflation is just one common application. Industrial blowers are also commonly used for ventilation, to dry carpets, to circulate air in a workspace, for exhaust, cooling, and in HVAC blower systems. In these situations, portable blowers are preferred to fans, because they provide greater control over where the flow of air is directed. For example, when drying saturated carpets, a blower can be positioned so that air is directly aimed at the wet carpets. With a fan, the flow of air is at a lesser pressure, and thus, the flow is distributed more broadly.

What Are the Differences Between Industrial Blowers and Fans?

The key difference between the two is the way in which they circulate air. As mentioned, blowers provide a more directional stream of air. Plus, another difference is that blowers have a different appearance and are constructed differently.

For example, industrial blowers are often called “snail blowers” or “squirrel cage blowers” because of the way they’re constructed. Some blowers are shaped like a snail shell, for example. The shell, or fan housing, contains a fan wheel, which is driven electrically or by gas to propel the fan blades. Air is drawn into the fan housing pushed out through an outlet, which results in that steady, continuous stream of air.

Therefore, you can tell the difference between fans and blowers by the way that air is drawn into the device. Fans use propellers, while blowers use a wheel, which is where the term squirrel cage comes from. They look like giant hamster or squirrel wheels. Plus, another key difference is the pressure at which the air is delivered. A blower provides a higher pressure stream, which makes blowers better suited for exhaust, inflation, pushing air or gas through a hose or duct, and for pressurizing spaces.

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