Customer Reviews

Solar Safari Cool Hat

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought an earlier version of this hat in 1984 and have used it every summer since: watching my sons' soccer games, hiking, camping and other outdoor activities in the direct sun. For the last two summers I've been walking 5 miles every day wearing this helmet. I have fair skin and have to be careful not to get too much sun.

People think the hat looks weird until they try it and find out that it really does make a significant difference. My version has a thin, rectangular sponge which attaches to the inside of the hat band. This sponge can be dipped in water. When the air blows through the sponge it feels like air conditioning. (The sponge in my hat, sadly, over the years has deteriorated, and I'm looking for a replacement of some kind.) Take my word for it: the hat really works. They're well made. After 23 years, other than the sponge needing replacement, mine looks like new. Buy one if you spend lots of time in the sun.

I purchased the hat 2 weeks ago and used it when I worked as a vendor at an street fair in 95-degree heat last weekend. It helped a lot, and the only time I needed to run it on the battery was when I went indoors. Actually, it is lightweight, and only uses 1 AA battery. Everyone who saw me with the hat demanded to know where I bought it.

I received this hat recently, took it in the sun, nothing. Zip. Nada. Stuck a battery in it and the fan works. So what I discovered is that you have to take it in the sun and give the fan a nudge to get it going. Then when you walk through shade, it stops. To get it going again, you have to nudge it again. Talk about annoying. It can be run off a battery instead. So technically speaking, yes it works, if you don't mind constantly nudging the fan to restart it.

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Let's face it, nothing is going to keep you 100% cool on a 100 degree day while mowing except a John-Deere with an air conditioned cab. So anything that helps is a plus. The Solar hat is just such a plus. Somebody pinched my trusty "Bombay Bowler" pith helmet (made in India) out of my car a couple of years ago. Since then I've bought about ten pith helmets, hoping that one would keep my head as cool as the one that was stolen. None of them did.

I'd been wanting to try a solar powered hat for some time but the price put me off. When the Amazon price was cut in half I couldn't resist. Mine arrived today and I tested it.

Yes, the fan only runs on solar when the sun is very bright. No big deal. If you can't afford the price of an AA cell for backup you need to go on government assistance or try for some stimulus money.

The fan stirs up just enough breeze on the center of the forehead to give you evaporative cooling on a hot, still, dry, central Texas day. I have fair skin and, like many men my age, also "have a hole in my haircut," making me susceptible to sunburn and maybe future melanoma. The hat itself is made of stiff shellacked woven fiber that shades the head but also lets air in and out through the tiny open pores. It's the perfect combination of shade and ventilation, and very lightweight. The internal suspension band is velcro adjustable and will easily accommodate the largest head size. The central brow portion of the band is covered with a porous sweat absorber, a small but nice touch.

One reviewer suggested adding a sun shield to cover the fan opening so your nose won't sunburn. This isn't a bad idea, and is the only modification I might make. If you want a powerful miracle of personal air conditioning, this hat is not for you. But for the price, and a good compromise between lightweight and fan powered cooling, this hat is about as good as you're going to get. And yes, it's made in China, so don't expect Rolls Royce after-sales service.

By the way, this hat is patterned after pith helmets in which the larger portion of the brim shades the neck and the smaller part with the "cross-strap" shades the eyes and face. The hat is actually being worn backwards if it is turned with the fan Solar Safari Cool Hatat the front and blowing on the brow. With this in mind I put the hat on "correctly" which had the fan blowing on the back of my neck. It fealt great. Try it, you might like it better this way.
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This hat started out as a good idea, but it could use some improvements: 1. The fan should be larger. Two batteries would fit under the brim as well as the one provided for if another cell were required to power a larger fan. As it is now designed the fan really doesn't do much to cool your forehead on a hot day. (Surprisingly, it is great in an air conditioned room as it blows nice cool air on your forehead.)
2. The solar choice on the switch should have a fourth choice for "Auto Solar/Battery" which would allow the electronics in the hat to switch between solar and battery power automatically, depending on the availability of direct sun light.
3. The switch may be somewhat defective -- if I have it on the Solar setting and go out into the sun light, the fan does not always start to operate. I have to switch it to Off and then back to Solar to start it. This kind of defeats the purpose of the Solar setting.
4. More padding on the forehead portion of the hat would be good.
5. Adding another fan to the back of the hat would be great, as would two more fans placed on the sides of the hat. Yes, this would require more battery power (unless some of the fans were only solar powered -- then more solar panels would probably be needed)and be more expensive, but might be well worth it.
Finally, I mailed the Warranty Registration to Sun-Mate Corporation in CA and it came back as "Not Deliverable As Addressed." This fact and the design of their website makes one wonder about this company....

I am way cooler with this hat than any other I've had. The band suspends the hat and the fan cools the underside. Great for working around the horse farm.

This safari cool hat works good but could use a larger fan, you can barley feel the air blowing, but it does help. I use it when I am on my tractor and while fishing to stay a little cooler

I'm not sure what I was expecting from the fan. It's not really noisy but you can hear it. The volume of air it moves is very low and barely noticeable. On solar only, you'll need a bright sunny day between 10:30am-1:30pm to generate enough sun light to power the fan. The hat fits comfortabily but doesn't fit snuggly and will fall/blow off, likely due to the placement of the solar cell and fan.

I bought this hat because I liked the idea of the solar powered fan. The fan does run on solar power, but even in full sun the fan does not run as well as when in runs on battery. When running on solar power the fan will speed up, slow down, or stop depending on the orientation of the solar cell. The fan may stop even if you are standing in the sun if the top of the hat is not pointing in the right direction. My other problem with the hat is that it is almost too small. I wear a 7 ¾ hat size and it fits very snug.
The fan runs very well on battery and I can move in and out the shade and it still runs. I plan on using the solar power as a backup. The hat does seem to keep me cooler and I wear it whenever I work outside. The air flow over my face does fill nice in the Louisiana summers.

Many years ago I was given a solar fan ball cap, while it was nice, it just did not do the job. The ball cap would collapse under the weight of the solar panel and become ineffective. When I saw the Solar Safari Cool Hat I said to myself, that's what I need. I ordered two of them (one for my son)and the first time I used it, while mowing the yard, I was satisfied. Not only did the fan work great, the rigidity of the Safari Cool Hat allowed for shade and excellent circulation of air. All in all, I think this is great! I am very satisfied. Thanks