Around 90% of US households use air conditioning to beat the heat. With this, skyrocketing energy bills are pretty much expected. Luckily, whole house fans help cut down on surging energy costs. But how to use a whole house fan to maximum advantage?
Whole house fans require you to open a few windows, kick-start them using a remote, and enjoy the cool breeze replacing the stale indoor air.
Sure enough, relaxing in the air conditioning during scorching summer sounds enticing; soaring energy bills can be a pain in the neck. Whole house fans offer an excellent alternative to make your summers less hot while reducing costs. However, using them appropriately is the key, and the guide below explains how.
What Is a Whole House Fan?
As the name suggests, a whole house fan is a large fan that cools your entire house. Professionals install it in the ceiling between the living space and the attic, which helps reduce the heat load indoors. They are also attached to the attic vent, which causes hot air to flow inside your home.
Once installed, you do not need to turn on your air conditioner. Instead, the fan will do its job to reduce the heat and amount of energy required to cool your home.
How Do They Work?
The operation of whole house fans is relatively simple. The device pulls the cool outside air from open windows and pushes the hot, trapped air outside through the attic vent.
However, for them to work efficiently, the temperature outdoors must be less than indoors. Fortunately, there’s no secret sauce to achieving that. Homeowners typically open their doors and windows in the morning or night when the outside heat reduces. Because the cold air enters indoors by opening the windows, the house temperature reduces despite the heat outdoors.
This phenomenon also decreases the heat load indoors. Heat load refers to how hot your home gets from the inside. A high heat load is not ideal for traditional cooling. It overworks the air conditioner, which can otherwise be avoided with a whole house fan.
Besides, it keeps your house from hitting the cooling temperature set on the thermostat. However, whole house fans eliminate the heat load issue by reducing excess heat and keeping the house as cool as possible.
What’s more, it also prepares the indoors for efficient AC utilization. Put simply; you won’t need to run the air conditioning for long hours to cool your home.
Types of Whole House Fans
While the basic features remain the same, different whole house fans operate differently. Besides the traditional models, manufacturers have introduced types that are quick to install and better insulated.
We’ll explore three primary types of whole house fans below.
Standard Whole House Fan
Standard fans are the most cost-effective and readily available whole-house fans. They offer a fairly good method to reduce indoor heat if you live in a region with a warmer climate.
While the upfront costs of standard fans are affordable, the installation charges might be more. Experts believe that moving a joist to frame out a fan box or mounting an extra attic vent may cost more than the initial charges of standard whole house fans.
Another downside is that the vented openings act like open windows during winter. This allows hot, moist air to travel out and into your attic. Therefore, you’d need to conceal your fan with an insulated box during the off-season; it will reduce heat loss.
Insulated Whole House Fan
Those living in colder regions need a fan that holds warm air when not operating. Fortunately, insulated-door fans cater to your needs because they feature insulated panels that open whenever you switch on the fan. Not only does this feature help during winters, but it also reduces the heat during summers when you run the air conditioning.
Insulated-door fans may not circulate as much air as the former fan type, but they operate more quietly, allowing you to run them all night.
Besides, you can mount them in the hallway. However, a few portable models fit around or between the joists for easy installation.
Inline Whole House Fan
Inline fans circulate less air than standard fans. However, you can produce the cooling effect by installing one in each bedroom or the room you want to keep cool. The small intake port of inline fans is less noticeable and offers easier installation. Besides, they have damp doors that hold in the warm air and keep it from moving out during winters.
Best Way to Use a Whole House Fan
A whole house fan requires appropriate installation before running. Because an improperly mounted fan would fail to function, it is advised to call in a professional for the purpose. A skilled professional takes your attic measurements and mounts the required circuit wiring. They may also use new attic vents.
More attic ventilation is required to exhaust the whole house fan’s air outside. Therefore, you may need 2-4 times more area than standard air vents.
Besides, you’ll also need a tight-sealing cover for the off-season. It may come with the fan you purchase, or you can ask a professional to build one. Further, the story doesn’t end after you take the required steps for installation and the professional mounts the unit in your home.
You must familiarize yourself with the best method to use the fan and enjoy it to the maximum. Keep the following tips in mind.
- Open the doors and windows. The whole house fans don’t work like air conditioners. They require you to open the doors and windows of rooms you want to cool. The fan will work efficiently when the outdoor air is cooler than indoors. To achieve this, you must open the windows and doors.
- Switch the fan on. Turn on the fan using a portable remote and feel the fresh air replacing the warm air trapped inside your home.
- Turn off the AC. You won’t keep your AC on for obvious reasons. The whole house fan requires you to open the doors and windows while the AC unit demands otherwise. So, it’s best to keep it off and keep the energy from going down the drain.
- Keep the fan running all night. Experts suggest keeping the whole house fan functional all night. The key is to cool the entire house, not the air alone. A fair amount of time is needed to draw the air from a home’s structure and ventilate the indoors. When you ventilate the home all night, you wake up to a cooler house the next day, eliminating the need for running the AC.
- Day and night precautions. Kick-start the whole house fan at high speed. Later, reduce it and consider running the unit at a low speed the entire night.
- Be patient. The whole house fan draws in the cool outdoor air and pushes out the indoor warm air to effectively cool your home. This takes a few minutes to an hour. So, you must not expect the fan to cool down your home magically like air conditioners. They may take more time but are worth it, given the end result and reduced operating costs.
How Many Windows Should You Open for a Whole House Fan?
You should at least open one window in your home when running a whole house fan. However, it is recommended to open two or more windows to make the most out of the unit. This will allow the fan to work more efficiently and provide a nice breeze to the entire house.
Alternatively, you can consider opening the windows of the rooms you want to cool. For instance, if you want your children’s bedroom to be the coolest, try opening the windows of that room. Besides, you are free to experiment with what works best for you.
Can You Run a Whole House Fan With the Windows Closed?
The whole house fans, unlike air conditioners, cannot operate without opening the windows. Therefore, you must never run the unit with closed windows. Not only will the fan fail to function, but it’ll also create negative pressure indoors. Consequently, you’ll run it without actually benefiting from it. Besides, it may cause deleterious back drafting, leading to gas appliances catching fire.
It’s best to open the windows before turning on the fan to prevent unpleasant instances and use the unit to your advantage.
How to Use a Whole House Fan In a Two-Story House?
There’s no rocket science behind using a whole house fan in a two-story house. However, you must keep a few tips in mind for its efficient working. Because the unit operates through suction by drawing in the cooler outdoor air, you must:
- Open 2-3 doors in your home
- Fully open a few home windows (Ideally, 2-3)
- Slightly open multiple windows (a few inches apart)
You have the three options mentioned above. You can use a blend of these or try one after the other to see which one works best for you.
Besides, once you find your ideal option, open the same doors and windows to allow airflow.
Generally, opening the windows facing north or those under the shade is best. Because north pole air is naturally cool, and so is the shaded air, the unit will cool your home quicker.
Besides, do not forget to install insect screens on your doors and windows to keep dust and pests out.
Note that a two-story house needs more time to cool down. Therefore, you must practice the “keep the fan running all night” suggestion to best use your unit.
How Do You Use a Whole House Fan In Summer?
The whole house fan cannot work to its maximum unless the heat load is less indoors. Unfortunately, it isn’t uncommon for the house temperature to rise above the temperature outdoors during summers. In case that happens, you have two options:
- Shut the doors and windows and run the air conditioner for a few minutes
- Open the windows and doors and switch on the fan to keep the home closer to the outdoor temperature. The circulating air will also serve to cool the atmosphere indoors.
If you want to cool a specific room, consider opening its windows fully to boost air circulation. To further enhance the airflow in a particular room, close the windows in other rooms.
Lastly, consider opening your doors and windows in the evening and early morning to reduce the heat indoors. This will allow the whole house fan to function more efficiently to cool your entire house.
Benefits of Whole House Fans
Proper ventilation and central location are crucial to the functioning of a whole house fan. An appropriately installed system is a lifetime investment because it significantly adds to your lifestyle.
If you plan to install one in your home, you’ll naturally wonder about its benefits. Here’s how a whole house fan can uplift your lifestyle and add to your well-being.
Affordable Rates
Buying a whole house fan won’t burn a hole in your pocket. Fortunately, the unit comes with affordable upfront costs. A quality whole house fan may cost around $500-$1500. However, the price range varies depending on its size, type, and brand. Besides, the installation fee also makes a difference to the overall costs.
Quick Installation
Whole house fans are designed to accommodate joists and roof trusses. Therefore, you can mount most of them without framing or cutting. An experienced professional may take up to 2 hours to install the unit.
Low Operating Cost
Air conditioners significantly add to your energy bills. Fortunately, whole house fans eliminate the trouble due to low operating costs. In fact, if you don’t live in an excessively colder region, a whole house fan can entirely replace your AC.
Quiet Functioning
While a few old-school models produce noise, newer versions operate quietly. There’s nothing more frustrating for light sleepers than loud noises at night. Luckily, you can run the unit throughout the night and enjoy a good night’s sleep due to its quiet operation.
Getting Rid of Stale Indoor Air
Because the whole house fan draws the fresh air inside your home, it keeps the indoors fresh and clean. Not only does it eliminate unpleasant odors, but it also ventilates your house.
Limited Need for AC
Running whole house fans during summer mornings, evenings, and nights eliminates the need for the air conditioner. In fact, experts recommend not to use the AC while running the whole house fan.
First, the cool air from the AC is passed outside and will replace the outdoor air. Second, whole house fans require you to open windows that don’t make sense when running an AC.
Keeping the Core of Your House Cool
While cooling your home air is one thing, if your property’s mass remains hot, it’ll get expensive to cool your house. Whole house fans cool your home’s structure, attic, and contents, reducing the need for additional cooling sources. As such, you drastically reduce the costs of cooling your home.
A Healthier, Happier Home
Different bacteria, odors, and allergens are trapped in our homes when we shut them down during the winter months. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the air pollutants indoors may be 4-5 times more than outdoors. This is a cause of concern because people spend around 90% of their time indoors.
Consequently, it may lead to respiratory issues and other infections. Proper ventilation is needed to remove air pollutants. Fortunately, whole house fans whisk away the impurities indoors and replace them with fresher air. As such, they dramatically enhance your indoor air quality, leading to a healthier home.
Do I Need Both an Attic Fan and a Whole House Fan?
You do not necessarily need an attic fan combined with a whole house fan, but investing in both can provide an added benefit to indoor ventilation.
Technically, an attic and a whole house fan serve different purposes. The former ventilates and exhausts the attic air outdoors, keeping the attic cool.
Whole house fans, on the flip side, are installed in the attic but use the fresh outdoor air to cool your living space. So, attic fans reduce the attic heat while the whole house fans make your entire house a comfortable space.
By installing an attic fan, you’ll reduce attic heat build-up, which may boost the efficiency of a whole house fan. So, mounting an attic fan isn’t crucial, but it may elevate the whole house fan functioning by lowering the attic temperature.
Can You Use Your Duct System as a Whole House Fan?
You can use your duct system as a whole house fan. However, it isn’t recommended because it’ll defeat the purpose of a whole house fan.
While duct systems do an excellent job carrying the air from the AC unit throughout your home, they’ll add to your energy bills. The primary purpose of a whole house fan is to reduce energy costs while cooling your home. Therefore, using duct systems will not fulfill the very goal of cutting costs, to begin with.
