Paintball Masks With Fans Built In: Are They Worth It & 4 Top Picks

Are paintball masks with built-in fans really worth the money? Or, better yet, which paintball masks with built-in fans are worth the money?

One of the reoccurring nightmares of every paintball player is having their maks filled up with fog in the middle of a game.

There is no way other than lifting your mask and wiping it, which is really unsafe and will disturb the game’s momentum.

So what can you do to prevent paintball mask fog? Well, it’s not only built-in fans. Let’s check out some other solutions first.

Solutions For Paintball Masks Fogging Up

There are three approaches to resolving this issue; which one you choose is up to you and your budget. All three methods have their own merits and demerits.

Using Anti-fog Lens Spray Regularly.
Buying An Anti Fog Paintball Mask.
Buying A Paintball Mask With Fans Built In It.

I will have dedicated posts for the first two solutions. But in this post, I’ll discuss in detail how effective paintball masks with fans built in them are and which ones are the best.

Table of Contents

What Does A Paintball Mask With A Fan Built In Do?

Paintball masks with fans work based on a straightforward design and concept.

They provide proper air circulation for your mask to avoid the chance of fog, which is just water particles coming from your breath and having nowhere to escape to.

Using an anti-fog lens spray can withstand fog only for a certain period. Anti-fog masks do a better job by having more ventilation holes. Still, it has some flaws when playing for long periods in hot weather.

To better understand why a paintball mask with a built-in fan works, let’s see the reason for the fog:

The air you breathe out is warm and has a high moisture volume, increasing the humidity inside your mask.

As the warm air accumulates, the temperature inside your mask rises when compared to the outside temperature.
Then, when the humid air comes in contact with the mask lens, it condenses.
This condensation of humid air on your lens results in fog.

Thus the main purpose of masks with a built-in fan is to reduce humidity and temperature by moving humid air out of the mask and fresh air into it.

You might have noticed that in the early morning, your car window gets fogged up, and the AC quickly clears it up. When it is cold outside, you face the same situation.

In both cases, the humid air inside the car comes in contact with the car window, condenses, and results in fog. The built-in fan for your paintball mask does a similar job.

The More Serious Effect

In addition to all of this, a built-in fan prevents suffocation in long games in hot weather, which is awful if you’ve had the unfortunate chance to try it.

This is because the air which you breathe out into the mask contains more Carbon Monoxide than fresh air. In case of no ventilation, you will repeatedly breathe this air in and out.

The air will slowly become lacking in oxygen and abundant in Carbon monoxide, gradually decreasing your brain function due to a lack of oxygen. This will cause your ability to think and respond quickly to decline, and you’ll overall feel pretty exhausted.

Overall, while I’m not a big fan of wasting money, this can be a solid investment (if you get the right mask). However, an anti-fog mask (which is very ventilated) paired with an anti-fog spray can do a pretty similar job.

4 Best Paintball Masks With Built-In Fans

Jadedragon Tactical Paintball Mask

The tough memory composite and lens with a dual filter are the main attractions of this mask. It has high shock absorption property with anti-fogging property with great ventilation.

The forehead cushion and adjustable strap are other useful benefits of this product. However, it is currently available only in black if you like some flair in your paintball gear.

CS Protective Tactical Airsoft Mask

This product comes with two circulation fans and two pairs of inner glasses. The two pairs are UV protective and protect you from both sunshine and direct hits. The two fans come with inbuilt filters, cleaning the air coming into the mask.

This helps prevent you from breathing any paintball debris on the outside of your mask, as well as sand, dust, or other debris.

This is an excellent option for those looking for a stylish and practical mask, as it both works great and looks like something out of Chernobyl. However, it is said to be a bit rigid.

Jadedragon Tactical Protective Skull Mask

This is a decent product that is available in an awesome design. Two exhaust fans on either side of the mask provide great ventilation. The fans work with the help of typical batteries, which are easy to swap.

It has the coolest design out of all of these but will need a lot of adjustments to be comfortable.

ATAIRSOFT Tactical Protective Skull Mask

This is a pretty solid mask, also with an awesome design. It provides good air circulation that does a great job at defogging. But, it doesn’t have fans!

So why is it on this list? Because, as you’ll notice, most of the paintball masks with fans have really bad build quality, fit, or whatever else. This mask is built awesome, looks awesome, and is super comfortable.

It has a bunch of ventilation that will ensure no fogging. In my opinion, it’s the best option here.

Conclusion

If you are frustrated with the fog inside your paintball mask, there’s your solution. I’ve given you some other solutions (ventilated masks and spray), but paintball masks with built-in fans are the best solution for fog and air circulation if you have the budget.

Author

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Noah Vasser

Noah is crazy about paintball. At the age of 11, Noah took part in his first paintball match and has been hooked ever since! To take his passion to the next level, and inspired by many paintball professionals, he started Paintballic.com