23 Jan Wind Scoops
Wind scoops are wonderful, funneling even the tiniest breeze down below. They were a big part of our ventilation strategy. In hot weather, a good wind scoop is worth its weight in gold for keeping the galley cool. Fans will move the air, but it’s a wind scoop that will funnel cool (or at least cooler) air down below.
The problem with most wind scoops though, is that they assume your boat stays in the same position relative to the wind. But sailors know that the wind and current are almost never steady — things are always changing. Even when you’re at a dock, the wind does not stay steady.
Consequently, with a traditional wind scoop, you’re constantly having to adjust the scoop so that it catches the air.
We found and used a wonderful “4-way wind scoop” (some companies refer to these as “omnidirectional”). This ingenious design has four chambers and the correct ones will open up and funnel air below as the boat turns relative to the wind.
Here’s a great video from Swiss-Tech showing how a 4-way wind scoop works:
I can only find three companies in the US that sell them (none in Canada). Cruising Solutions, a cruiser-owned company and one of TBG’s sponsors, is one of the three. We paid about $80 each for our 4-way wind scoops (from a company that has since gone out of business) and thought they were worth every penny — Cruising Solutions’ Breeze Bandits are just as high quality and less than $50!
The two other places that sell them in the US (many places sell them in England, if you happen to be cruising Europe) both price them around — or over — $100:
I have not had any dealing with these last two retailers, and so can’t vouch for their service or policies.
Our experience in the Sea of Cortez, with lots of sun and UV damage but infrequent high winds, was that one wind scoop would usually last 9 months to a year — we always kept an extra on hand, just in case, as it was such a key part of our keeping cool.
I’ve always recommended a 4-way wind scoop, but finding these from Cruising Solutions at such a good price makes me really, really recommend them! If you’re in a warm climate at all, you’re going to want one — or more!
(Note: if your boat doesn’t have a convenient halyard — or any halyard — check out the freestanding Breeze Booster instead.)
Mid-Life Cruising!
Posted at 23 January 2012Thanks so much Carolyn for sharing this! I’ve had a wind scoop on my “gotta get soon” list and planned on spending about $80-$100. I think you just saved me some money!
Royce Johnson
Posted at 23 May 2012Hi Carolyn, We love your site ever since we discovered it with a link to a galley safety article. We sail a catamaran so the motion issue is much less but most of the same challenges still apply. In our case, we have 6 deck hatches and there is no way that we could use halyard-hoisted windscoops. Our preferred solution is the Breeze Buster which is free standig and also relatively in expensive. We were put on to them by Jay and Tanya of Take 2. Thanks for al the great info, looking forward to more.
Royce
Cerca Trova
Carolyn Shearlock
Posted at 23 May 2012Thanks for sharing! That would also be a good solution for power boats.
Annette
Posted at 21 June 2012Hi Carolyn,
I’ve just completed the field test of the wind scoop that my husband engineered and I made from 8oz nylon from Sailrite. Not too hard – some panels seamed together and casings for the PVC pipe frame to hold it open. We used snaps at the bottom to hold it to the hatch frame inside. The secret there is to put the snap tops on small strips of elastic so they give with the wind gusts. Works great! Don Casey also has a design with a baffle that would work better during rain. With a little sewing experience you can save some money making a nice wind scoop.
Thanks for your helpful info,
Annette
S/V Magnolia
tami
Posted at 13 August 2012the “Big Book of Boat Canvas” by Karen Lipe has detailed instructions for a halyard-hoisted 4-way windscoop, in addition to lots of good advice on how to fabricate all sorts of canvas things. It’s my favorite book
Michelle Beatty on Facebook
Posted at 03 February 2013love this..Must have
Leigh Ann Bishop Long
Posted at 25 September 2013Need to look into this!
Jess Gregory
Posted at 28 December 2013Thought you’d be interested in our Hatch Hoodie wind scoop + awning. It brings air in the forward hatch, but you can keep it up when it rains. So you don’t have to close the hatch and get hot! It is not four sided, but you can tilt it up, or to either side to channel air in even at the dock. Lots of shade too — to keep cool down below.
Jess
Carolyn Shearlock
Posted at 29 December 2013Here’s the link to the Hatch Hoodie from Banner Bay Marine:
https://www.bannerbaymarine.com/store/index.php?l=product_detail&p=37
darlene
Posted at 28 December 2013We have a 4 chamber Breeze Bandit. It was our best investment for anchoring out on hot summer nights.
Shari Salzhauer Berkowitz
Posted at 29 December 2013I love mine! Still fiddling with the best interior attachments for it, but even when imperfectly mounted, it works great. As long as it does not start to rain in the night.
Darlene Burnett Price
Posted at 21 August 2014I love our scoop.
Darren Burleson
Posted at 21 August 2014I have this and it is awesome!
Jim Allen
Posted at 21 August 2014Love my Breeze Bandit !!!
Deborah Marshall
Posted at 22 August 2014We tried our Breeze Bandit wind scoop on a very hot day a couple of weeks ago, works extremely well, was able to harness the little available wind into a cool cabin breeze. Love it!
Chief Wizard
Posted at 19 January 2015The next generation http://www.BreezeWizard.com
Catch a good nights sleep !!
Rupert
Posted at 12 June 2015Just ordered one, thanks so much, saved me a ton of money.
Thomas Rheuble
Posted at 02 May 2016What happens when it rains hard and your away from the boat?
Carolyn Shearlock
Posted at 03 May 2016Rain will get in, same as if you’d left the hatch open by itself . . .
Lisa
Posted at 04 January 2017We plan to summer in the Sea of Cortez this year and have no idea where we could buy one of these here? Do you think we could get one made?
Carolyn Shearlock
Posted at 04 January 2017Katty in LaPaz made several for us over the years. She’s the woman who has the business making Lycra dive suits. Or ask someone who is going to the US to bring one back for you.
Carolyn Shearlock
Posted at 05 January 2017Also, ask on the cruiser’s net in La Paz — it’s been almost 10 years since I cruised there and some of the stores might carry them now.
cyndy
Posted at 01 June 2017Hi Carolyn,
Late to the party. I was going to order 2 right away (It’s hot in Florida this week!)
The largest they make is 24 x 16 but my hatch is 24 x 24.
Any 2nd best suggestions?
thanks
cyndy
Carolyn Shearlock
Posted at 01 June 2017I used mine in a bigger hatch on our previous boat by tying a loop of light line (1/8″ I think, maybe slightly smaller) to “extend” the loops to reach the hooks at the corners of the hatch. Still moves plenty of air down the hatch! Yes, it IS hot this week (we’re in Marathon)!
Mark Peterson
Posted at 08 August 2017Pretty cool.. I’ll bet you already ordered one…
Clare Bardsley
Posted at 08 August 2017This is really helpful! Looking at the design, I’m assuming they can’t be used when it’s raining. Does anyone have any favourites that are ok to use when it’s raining?
The Boat Galley
Posted at 08 August 2017I recently saw a post in a group I’m in about the Hatch Dorade. I contacted them about getting one to review, but they have not yet responded so I have no first-hand info. https://hatchdorade.com/
Clare Bardsley
Posted at 08 August 2017Great, thanks!
The Boat Galley
Posted at 09 August 2017Here’s the link for that: https://www.atninc.com/atn-dorcap-sailing-deck-gear.shtml
Brad Hildreth
Posted at 10 August 2017Lewis Sipfher We are running into the same thing with Hatch Dorade. Hours of cutting and sewing. The features have a cost. We are doing what we can to get the costs down while staying with Sunbrella for its longevity.
Leigh Rosalyn
Posted at 08 August 2017Oh that looks like it would be lovely. My husband and I moved on to a 41′ sailboat a week ago. We are in Charleston, SC and the heat is killing me! We put a small window AC unit into the rear companionway so we could sleep, but I’m finding it impossible to function during the day up front. But if it has to be taken down in the rain I’ll be taking it down 5 times a day here. LOL But for $50 I think I’ll be willing to give it a try!! Thanks for all the great articles!!
Pamela Shubert
Posted at 09 August 2017The Cruise Bandit link is broken. I got an error message
Jane Jarratt
Posted at 09 August 2017And me!