Having a desk fan in a stuffy office, home or business alike, can be a godsend on a hot summer's day. Heat like nothing else can befuddle the mind, making it hard to concentrate on your all important office work. The desk fan was created to fight this mind slowing heat. While usually not powerful enough to be a complete air conditioning solution for your office, the desk fan can be a great stopgap to keep most office spaces livable. Desk fans also come in a vast array of shapes, sizes, designs, and many even have unique options such as oscilation and "misting". Cheap and functional, the desk fan is a great investment for any office prone to hot days.

What is a Desk Fan?

A desk fan is a specialty form of the basic axial fan. These fans operate by rotating several angled "blade" around a central axle, forcing air forward. Desk fans are usually no more than a couple feet tall, and can come in a wide variety of different shapes, sizes, colors, and styles. Construction is typically of hard plastic, although many high quality metal models are also available. Dr. Schuyler Skaats Wheeler is credited with inventing the first desk fan between 1882 and 1886.

Choosing a Desk Fan

Now that we know what a desk fan is, it's time to think about choosing which one to purchase. With so many different desk fans to choose from, it can be very difficult to choose which one is right for you. Luckily this vast selection is not a detriment, but a boon, to the potential desk fan purchaser. Simply ask yourself a couple of easily answered questions:

• How much desk space do you have? A very important question, as this will dictate the size of the desk fan you will but. Many older style desk fans feature wide bases which make them very stable. This is especially important for oscillating fans. However these wide bases come at the price of taking up precious desk space. Consider this when making your choice.
• Will the fan I'm looking at match my office decor? Like any piece of furniture, it's important to match your desk fan's look to the look of your office. You wouldn't put a hot pink fan on a marble office desk would you? Ask your local interior design specialist for design ideas.
• How much am I willing to spend? The old phrase "you get what you pay for" comes into play when choosing a new desk fan. While many desk fans can be found for well under ten dollars, remember that paying a little more now can mean more comfort later. Higher quality desk fans are quieter, more energy efficient, and most importantly more reliable than their bargain bin cousins.
  
• How much air do i intend to move? Not an obvious question, but still a very important one. Desk fans with larger fan blades will tend to more air at once than fans with smaller blades. Keep an eye out for this bit of information when making your choice.

Desk Fan Placement and Tips

Once you have purchased your desk fan, it will be necessary to choose where it will be placed on your desk, and to keep it well maintained. Luckily these two tasks can actually be pretty easy. Most people will simply place their new desk fan on any empty piece of desk space, point at their chair, and go. while this technique will certainly work, it's far from optimal. Here are some desk fan placement and tips to get you started:

• Mind your desk fan's power cord when choosing where to put it. Like any office appliance, your desk fan requires a power cord. As most people have found out the hard way, loose power cords can be a hazard in any home or office. When placing your new desk fan, be sure to drape the power cord behind the desk or away from walk ways if at all possible.
• Point your desk fan at you, not your documents! It's important to check your desk fan's "line of fire" to make sure it wont be disturbing any piles of important paperwork. It would be a shame to turn on your brand new desk fan only to have blow your carefully organized outbox all over the room!
• To oscillate or not to oscillate? This really can be the question. As stated above, desk fans can have a bad habit of blowing paperwork around. Adding a moving stream of air to the mix can lead to even further disaster. However, if paper documents aren't an issue, an oscillating desk fan can do a better job of cooling down a stuffy office.