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Do Whole House Fans Really Work?
As more and more people look for ways to reduce the use of their air conditioning systems, or even eliminate the need for A/C altogether, interest in whole-house fans is increasing. The idea is simple: A giant fan is used to exchange hot interior air with cooler outside air. However, you might be skeptical of the idea, especially if you haven't had satisfactory results when trying to cool rooms with fans. What makes whole-house fans different? Can they really work as good as air conditioning?
The Keys to Success with Whole-House Fans
There are a few main factors that need to be in place in order to fully replace air conditioning. One of the biggest is simple: The outside air needs to be within the desired temperature range. If it's 90 degrees out, pulling that air inside obviously isn't going to cool you down. However, most people live in climates that have milder temperatures, at least for the majority of the year.
As this implies, a home exhaust fan typically won't be able to replace air conditioning all year round. Instead, it will reduce the need for A/C. In many areas, it will make it so that the A/C doesn't need to be run at all for many more weeks than usual, and so that it can be run only at night for even longer.
The next key is to ensure that the house exhaust fan is properly sized. Depending on climate, the fan should be able to exchange all of the air in the house every 1.5-3 minutes. The warmer the climate is, the more air the fan should be able to exchange.
Ensuring the Enjoyability of a Whole-House Fan
The technical requirements are only part of the equation when it comes to actually enjoying having a house vent fan. Those living in the house must also be able to be comfortable while it is running. Noise levels are some of the most important factors here. Good fans are nice and quiet, but poor ones will make an industrial-level din that will have people rushing to turn them off. High-quality fans are also more efficient, so they're cheaper to run. This makes it essential to get a system that won't make a roaring noise as it operates.
A whole house attic fan will also be more enjoyable if it has a good controller. This will ensure that fresh air enters the home intermittently instead of in big blasts, thereby preventing sudden and uncomfortable temperature changes.
With these things in mind, it's easy to make sure that a whole house fan will be effective and enjoyable. It will also be more affordable than relying solely on air conditioning to cool the home. Finally, it will be a more environmentally-friendly option since it doesn't rely on chemical refrigerants to keep the temperature steady.
To learn more about whole-house fans and how to get the most out of them, visit Industrial Fans Direct. You can find a wide variety of home ventilation fans on the site, so you won't have any trouble finding one that is quiet and efficient.