Every central duct system should include some sort of filtration option, such as an air filter or electronic air cleaner. Constantly running the fan and filtering the air in your home has huge benefits for the health of your home's inhabitants.
Only use your fan when the outdoor air is cooler than your indoor air. Make sure your A/C is off when you run the fan to avoid wasting energy. We recommend running the whole house fan all night. The goal is to cool your entire house down, not just the air.
Cooling the core of your home
Homes cooled with whole house fans do not reheat as rapidly. Thermal mass cooling is the key principle to why whole house fans work so well in southern Colorado climates, because the outside temperatures are cool enough to run whole house fans often 10 to 12 hours a night.
Whole house fans which are large enough to create a breeze through the house can sometimes produce unintended effects such as noise, heat loss, and house depressurization. This can be improved with more attic vents and window area to replace the exhausted air. You must open windows.
Keeping a ceiling Fan running continuously is generally safe and will not harm the Fan. However, because the Fan consumes energy continuously, it may result in increased electricity costs.
Do not run your whole house fan during the day unless the temperature outside is cooler than the house is inside, though you may want to run the fan during the day to push air out of the attic. To do so, direct airflow from either the basement or the shady side of the home.
Before diving into details, here is the summary of the basics to know: –Yes, you can run an electric fan all day and night. However, fans that might have problems or look worn-out or suspicious should not be left running unattended. –Always check your fan to see if it is working.
Modern whole house fans are quieter and better insulated, but they're still not as common. Today, it's hard for whole house fans to compete with heat pumps and ductless heat pumps, which operate more efficiently and deliver better cooling than either whole house fans or traditional AC systems.
ECONOMICS O F OPERATION
A large 18,000 Btu/h window unit air conditioner with an energy efficiency ratio (EER) of 8.8 costs more than 17¢ to operate for one hour. By contrast, a whole house fan has a motor in the 1/4 to 1/2 hp range, uses 120 to 600 watts, and costs around 1¢ to 5¢ per hour of use.
Extra Hot days (over 100 degrees)
On some extremely hot summer nights, it will not cool off enough to run the whole house fan while you are awake at all. Use your whole house fan system for cooling the attic on these nights, to maximize a/c performance during the evening.
SHOULD I OPEN ALL MY WINDOWS IN MY HOME WHEN OPERATING A WHOLE HOUSE FAN? No, we recommend that you open very few select windows to match the proper net free venting of your home. The best way to use your system is to crack a window on the opposite side of your bedroom or hallway.
Whole-house fans cost significantly less to run than a window AC unit. You'll pay an average of $0.01 and $0.05 per hour to run a whole-house fan compared to $0.06 to $0.88 per hour for the cost to run a window AC, depending on its size and the size of your home.
Whole House Fans should never be used simultaneously with air conditioning of any kind – central air or window units. These systems can both reside in the same home and be used to complement one another, but they are more relay partners than three-legged-race partners.
Running a house fan all night
Overnight is the best time to cool the core of your home for best results during daytime hours. It can take some time to pull the heat out of your home's structure along with the contents of a house.
Low operating costs - Whole house fans use 90% less energy than a traditional air conditioner, drastically reducing your summer cooling costs. Better indoor air quality - Whole house fans improve your home's ventilation and keep odors from lingering in your home from pets, cooking, and other pollutants.
Is a whole house fan cheaper than AC? Yes, running a whole house fan is generally less expensive than running an air conditioning system. Small whole house fans pull in cool outside air through open windows and exhausts hot indoor air through the attic or roof.
Definitions of whole house fan vs. attic fan vary by region, causing some confusion. In a nutshell, whole house fans are designed to run after sundown, using cool night air to ventilate and cool your entire living space. Attic fans are designed to run on hot sunny days to clear super-heated air from your attic.
Running the fan constantly uses a bit more energy, as you might expect, and this can increase your utility bill. However, it's important to note that this increase might not be as large as you thought or even present at all – especially if your furnace is on the newer end and uses a high-efficiency motor.
Whole house fans can be extremely effective for improving air quality and comfort in a home. Designed to create better ventilation, cooling and air circulation, these units can be both energy-efficient and extremely effective.
Depending on the model you own, your whole house fan will be warranted for around 5 to 15 years.
Fans don't wear down as fast as people claim -- they're rated to run at 100% for tens of thousands of hours. (2 to 5 years usually.) It's not useless, but there isn't really much reason to do it, but in my eyes it doesn't matter why, so long as it works.
Although it could run for over a 24 hour period, it is still best to turn off your ceiling fan when you are at work or out of the house for an extended time to give the ceiling fans' motor a rest and reduce electricity use and cost.
The air blown out by your fan can irritate your sinuses, dry out your nose, mouth, and throat, and trigger your body to produce excessive mucus, leading to congestion and headaches. Apart from this, sleeping with a fan can result in a sore throat. The constant breeze may cause discomfort if you have allergies.