Is the Stroller Fan and Bug Repeller a waste of money?

[tarmand]

I am thinking of buying the following two items for our vacation, but am afraid I will be wasting my money. I posted on the family board and haven't gotten much of a response so I am trying here.

Frog Repeller

Pinwheel Fan

Anyone used these and think they are worth the money? Shipping is going to cost about $1 extra for these two items as I am ordering a monitor also.

Thanks,
Tammie

 

[Luv2trav]

DON'T buy those fans!! I bought two for our trip 3 weeks ago and they both broke. The latch that holds the batteries in broke and I had to keep taping it... Not to mention they suck up the batteries where we had to change them almost daily! I would buy a different fan. The wind output was bad too!

I do recommend stroller fans just not those!

 

[tarmand]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! I was just about to shell out $12 for this fan.

I really want a clip on fan that will put out a fair amount of air circulation, but I can't seem to find one. Anyone know where I can find a clip on battery operated fan?

 

[dizcrazy]

i got my clip-on fan with flexible blades at Ace Hardware (on-line)
I had searched this site for "stroller fans" and am very happy with the one I got.
It didn't circulate an abundance of air, but when it was 90 degrees and hot, it was nice to have and I liked that the baby could not get hurt if it dropped.

We didn't buy bug spray and did not seem to need it.

 

[austinsmommy]

I have 2 of these fans and just used them on our May trip. We had to tape one of our fans also. The problem that we found was that you have to have a very small screwdriver to change the batteries. We did not have one so had to search just about every gift shop at the parks to find someone that could find one for us!! This was a HUGE pain in the rear so we ended up just breaking the cover and then had to tape it shut. It was much easier to find tape than it was a screwdriver!!!! I will still continue to use them on future trips as I cannot find any other fan for this purpose!!!!!

 

[tarmand]

I may just order a couple of the ACE fans. I wish I could find some locally so that if they break or don't work properly, I can return them for a refund. I hate ordering something online and then having to ship it back if it is defective or breaks.

Thanks!

 

[ALostBoy]

Hi,

We bought one of these last year but from a
different website, One step ahead . We had just the opposite
experience with this fan. I had noticed the
screw in the battery cover and took a screw driver
with us, along with extra batteries. Our 2
year old would take naps in the stroller
and we would have it blowing air on her and
we felt it made a big difference. We plan on
taking it again when we go in July. It may
break before we leave for this trip, but it has
been great so far.
Sorry but I know nothing about the bug repeller.
Good Luck

 

[jiminy14]

Last year I was able to buy the clip-on fans at Target. They ran on batteries and had a very large clip to attach them with. They were located in the auto accessories aisle since they were promoted as dashboard clip-on fans. Maybe this is why people can't locate them.
As for the bug repeller, I do know that you will need some sort of bug spray if you plan on being out at night. The bugs at the mini golf courses are extremely bad. Once at Winter/Summerland I looked down at my leg to see about five mosquitos munching on me. The mosquitos are also bad at the bus stop at the MK especially in the evening hours.

 

[tarmand]

Originally posted by jiminy14
Last year I was able to buy the clip-on fans at Target. They ran on batteries and had a very large clip to attach them with. They were located in the auto accessories aisle since they were promoted as dashboard clip-on fans. Maybe this is why people can't locate them.
As for the bug repeller, I do know that you will need some sort of bug spray if you plan on being out at night. The bugs at the mini golf courses are extremely bad. Once at Winter/Summerland I looked down at my leg to see about five mosquitos munching on me. The mosquitos are also bad at the bus stop at the MK especially in the evening hours.

I will check in automotive, thanks. I don't think I will order the repeller since I doubt it works. I have read about Burt's Bees products being safe for babies so I think I might look into that.

Thanks,
Tammie

 

[decker96]

We had a similar bug repellar (it was a ladybug, no nightlight). It seemed to work somewhat, it's not perfect though. After my son was old enough for bug spray, I would still clip it onto my chair when I was outside. It worked for my upper body, but I still got bit on the lower legs and ankles. So I guess you need to be right next to it.
Bounce dryer sheets supposedly repel mosqitos too. I've read two different articles about it. They say to put one in your back pocket if you're outside so you could probably tie one or two on the stroller. Not sure if it works, but we're planning on trying it on DD 8 months' baby swing on the swing set this summer. Can't hurt anyway!

 

[Ellester]

I have a fan like the one on the Ace site for our stroller, it looks like it is identical. I found it for $5.99 at our local grocery store. I was really happy since I was also looking at the pinwheel fan but didn't want to pay that much. We've used it twice locally and I was very happy with it. I have had to change the batteries once, but it was simple to do. No screws or anything. I feel much better having it since my 3 month old is too young for sunscreen and I worry about him baking in the stroller with the sunshades closed.

 

[my3princes]

We have 3 of the pinwheel fans and absolutely love them. We used them for 2 weeks at Disney last August and had no problems at all. We had a small screwdriver to change the batteries and they did go through a set per fan per day, but we used them a lot. We thought that they were well worth the money and built well. They seemed to put out a very good breeze and we even used them in our car that does not have ac. The cage is great as it keeps little fingers out. The blades are plastic, not foam. I would certainly buy them again and I paid $20 apiece when I bought them.

 

[cbbi]

Tarmand - we also had success with the fan from One Step Ahead. Our inquisitive's son's fingers didn't poke through the holes - (though he tried really hard). It created a good breeze and held up well. On the down side - we really only used it when he was sleeping in the stroller because otherwise he was trying to pull it in with him, play with it - knock it off etc., the whole time. I would think a cheaper fan would do just as good a job if you find one that is kid proof. I was really glad we had the fan while he was napping in the stroller. Kept him quite comfortable.

As for the buggy thing - we don't know if it works or not because for some reason there weren't any bugs on the nights we were there.

 

[tarmand]

Originally posted by jiminy14
Last year I was able to buy the clip-on fans at Target. They ran on batteries and had a very large clip to attach them with. They were located in the auto accessories aisle since they were promoted as dashboard clip-on fans. Maybe this is why people can't locate them.
As for the bug repeller, I do know that you will need some sort of bug spray if you plan on being out at night. The bugs at the mini golf courses are extremely bad. Once at Winter/Summerland I looked down at my leg to see about five mosquitos munching on me. The mosquitos are also bad at the bus stop at the MK especially in the evening hours.

Thank you so much! I bought three of these over the weekend for less than what one pinwheel fan would have cost!