How To Run Your Whole House Fan To Save The Most Energy
With top models allowing you to save between 50% to 90% on your home's cooling costs, it makes sense to get the most possible out of your whole house fan.
While these systems are an excellent way to cool your house and supplement the use of your air conditioning, they won't do much if the owner doesn't take full advantage of how it works. Plus, it could be creating a pressure problem in the house if used it wrong, which could lead to disaster with gas appliances.
Our Rancho Santa Margarita whole house fan company wants to give you a few tips on how these efficient cooling systems work so you can stay safe and enjoy the most energy savings.
Here are a few things you need to know about whole house fans and how to run your whole house fan to save the most energy.
Whole House Fans Are Not The Same As Attic Fans
Whole house fans work much differently than standard attic fans. Most attic fans have a turbine that sits on top of the roof and catches the wind to turn the turbine. When there's enough wind, they draw the hot air inside your attic to the outdoors.
Electric attic fans are motorized, so the turbine turns via electrical power. They operate all the time. They offer a little more airflow than wind turbine attic fans.
Whole house fans, on the other hand, turn on when you need them to bring cool air in from your windows and ventilate the hot air in the attic out. They vent the entire house very quickly rather than just the attic space very slowly.
Safety With Whole House Fans
A house is pressurized to a certain degree. A whole house fan is a balanced ventilation system that neither pressurizes nor depressurizes your home. But, it will depressurize your home if the windows aren't opened.
Homeowners need to remember to open the windows in the house while using their system or else it can create a backdraft.
Operating a whole house fan wrongly by leaving the windows and doors closed can produce a potentially disastrous situation if you have gas appliances in the house. The backdraft created can draw toxic combustion gases back into the house.
Even if you don't have gas appliances, you'll suffer from too much humidity and the addition of pollutants being brought back into your house from the attic space. Your home will be less comfortable and your energy bills higher.
Now that you understand how the system works and how important it is to operate it correctly, let's talk about energy savings.
Saving The Most Energy With Your Whole House Fan
Whole house fans aren't appropriate for climates where nights are warm. Here in Rancho Santa Margarita, we have the perfect climate to install one and enjoy considerable energy-savings. In fact, with new models that are well made like our CentricAir Fan, people are saving as much as 50-90% on their cooling costs.
Here's how to get the most out of your unit.
Don't Use Your Whole House Fan When It's Hot Out
Since the purpose of this system is to draw cool air in from outside during the night or early mornings, your whole house fan won't do any good when it's hot out. Only use your system when it's cooler outside than inside your home.
Make sure you use the timer ONLY to turn off the fan, not to turn it on or you'll be venting hot air into your house, defeating the entire purpose of your system.
Don't Use Your Fan At The Same Time As Your Air Conditioning
While you could if you wanted to, using your fan at the same time as your air conditioning will waste a lot of energy. To save the most on your cooling costs, run your air conditioner during the hottest parts of the day and let your whole house fan do it's job at night and the early morning.
Run Your Whole House Fan Before You Use Air Conditioning
A home that's been closed up all day is full of hot air, especially in the attic. To enjoy the most energy savings, be sure to run your fan before you turn on your air conditioning (for about 4-5 hours during the night).
