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Review of: Le Maitre Power Mist
Date: 27/7/01
Now no longer in manufacture (older style Le Maitre units have all been superceeded by Microfog, Speedfogger and G300) the Le Maitre Power Mist Turbo is 1100 watts, with a 5 metre variflow remote control. After the initial warm-up time, two thermal trip clicks are heard, heralding that the unit is at full temperature and the "Ready to Operate" indicator glows. Essentially it could start producing smoke after the first click, but the output is slightly less dense and a re-heat will be required sooner. With the variflow remote, control of output is possible. The unit creates copious amounts of dense smoke on full output which lasts for approx. 20-30 seconds before a re-heat is required. It's actually quite frightening that so much smoke can be produced from such a small unit on full output. Continuous operation is possible with the Power Mist Turbo at about half full output. The Power Mist Turbo has no 'dead-band' which means it can re-heat 'on-the-fly' without having to switch off smoke output. However, on full output, there is an inevitable dead-band. The continuous output of the unit is best used after it has been switched on and been thoroughly heated for quite a while. It's often best to test the unit before implementation on location or installation. However, the smoke activation button on the remote control is momentary, which means that for continuous operation you'll perhaps need to change this to a latching switch.

Fairly quiet in operation - there is a fairly low frequency buzzing noise as the motor pumps the fluid through and the hiss of smoke - which can be fairly loud on full output. No on-board fluid space, so the long fluid pipe comes in handy for inserting into 5 litre bottles, which render the unit a little less portable than others. A Power Mist Portakit was available which is simply a wire clip basket attachment that lets a 5 litre bottle be mounted at the back of the unit.
I've heard on good authority that the Power Mist Turbo is rarely seen back at Le Maitre for repair.
I've seen one woefully under-used at a wax museum in York (now closed) for which it operated for 1 second every 5 minutes - hardly pushing the unit (which I believe used to sell for around £500), but was fairly quiet in operation. External fluid tank.

* Unit now out of production *

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