JimL wrote:
On 29 Jul 2006 00:43:26 -0700, wrote:
mm wrote:
On Fri, 28 Jul 2006 00:45:53 -0500, JimL wrote:
A couple of points.
1. If at all possible, leave the heated air in your vaulted
ceilings. No fans are anything to disturb the hot air. It is where
it should stay. The temp below can be 5 degrees cooler if you don't
disturb it.
That's what I thought. The fans are good in the winter, to blow the
hot air from the top of the room down to where you are, but in the
summer doing that just makes one hotter. Right?
Wrong. Ceiling fans blowing downward, with the AC running is always
going to feel cooler. Your AC vents are either located high up on the
wall or in the ceiling. So when the AC is blowing, the cool air is
going to blow above the fan creating a "cool breeze" effect. Fans on
vaulted ceilings should hang about 8ft from the floor.
There is a slight breeze from slow ceiling fans, but a better breeze
is created by a table fan that blows low altitude cool air on you,
rather than ceiling level hot air.
With a good fan you get much more than a slight breeze. I suggest "The
Hunter Original" 56" fan for the larger rooms.
I've owned 3 houses with vaulted ceilings and the "Hunter Original" is
the only fans I have ever used in the larger rooms.
So you like to take that hot air trapped in the vaulted ceiling and
spread it around eh?
If you have hot air "trapped" in your ceiling that is 5 degrees warmer
than the room temperature, than you, my friend, have some insulation
problems. Or worse.
Big stupid mistake, but to each his own.
http://www.progress-energy.com/about...eilingfans.asp
How Ceiling Fans Save Energy
Fans used to supplement air conditioning save energy by permitting a
higher thermostat setting. Air movement from the fan evaporates
moisture on the skin and makes a person feel cooler. With this cooling
effect, most people can raise their thermostat three to four degrees
and feel just as comfortable. And that can mean savings of around 25
percent on your cooling costs. For every degree you raise the air
conditioning thermostat, you can save 7 percent to 10 percent on
cooling costs. However, there are no energy savings if you use a
ceiling fan and do not raise the air conditioning thermostat.
http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/...ss_summer.html
Install ceiling fans - they make it feel at least four degrees cooler
during the summer.
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?...s_at_home_tips
Ceiling Fan w/ lighting: Ceiling fans can provide more than comfort.
Depending on when and how you operate them, they can also help you save
on your energy bills. In summer, run the blades counter-clockwise
(downward) to cool more efficiently. On hotter days, dialing up the
thermostat by only 2 degrees and using your ceiling fan can lower air
conditioning costs by almost 15% over the course of the cooling season.
Use ENERGY STAR qualified CFLs in the ceiling fan light fixture for
cooler running light bulbs and more energy savings. And remember:
Ceiling fans cool only people, not the room, so when you leave the room
turn the ceiling fan off.
http://phoenix.about.com/od/homesandrentals/qt/fans.htm
Why a Ceiling Fan
Just the movement of the air inside the house in the summer may be
enough to lower that thermostat for a couple of degrees, and save you
money on those summertime electric bills. You might save between 10%
and 40%! That means that the ceiling fans could easily pay for
themselves over just one or two summers in hot climates.
Ceiling fans don't lower the temperature in the room, they just provide
a breeze that can make you feel at least 5° cooler. Make sure the
ceiling fan blades are rotating counter-clockwise for a cooling effect.
That's the direction most ceiling fans need to move to get a downdraft.
http://www.fsec.ucf.edu/Pubs/energynotes/en-13.htm
Conclusion
In the hot, humid Southeast, fans can make people more comfortable and
reduce air conditioning costs. They can improve interior ventilation
and allow thermostat settings to be raised without sacrificing comfort.
The use of ceiling fans and oscillating fans are effective cooling
measures that should be considered and implemented where feasible by
any homeowner in the southeast.
http://www.hunterfaninternational.co...php?origx=38#6
6. How do fans cool the room - do they actually lower the temperature?
A ceiling fan cools by creating a wind chill effect; it does not lower
the room temperature. Wind chill effect makes you feel cooler by
accelerating the evaporation of perspiration on your skin. It is the
feeling you get when you open the window in a moving car. If you have a
ceiling fan in a room whose temperature is 27 degrees Celcius, running
the fan can create a wind chill effect that makes you feel as if the
temperature is 23 degrees Celcius. When used in conjunction with an air
conditioner, a ceiling fan can lower energy costs, because you can set
the thermostat of your air conditioner at a higher temperature.
7. Can the fan be used in the winter for any beneficial purpose?
A ceiling fan can help lower energy consumption in the winter by up to
10%. The temperature of the air in a heated room varies in layers; the
air near the ceiling is warmer than the air near the floor, because
warm air rises. A ceiling fan can help push the warmer air that is
trapped near the ceiling back down into the room, thus de-stratifying
the layers of warm air. As a result, the warm air is circulated where
it is needed, and the heating system does not overwork to warm the
room. To properly de-stratify a warmed room, the ceiling fan should be
run in a clockwise direction. This pushes the air up against the
ceilings and down the walls, to gently re-circulate the warm air
without creating a cooling wind chill effect.
Ps: my electric bill is less than yours.
My monthly gas bill for my car is less than yours. What kind of dumbass
comment is that?
Nevermind, I figured it out.