Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living. Alas,
that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My typical
unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights that
would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and fewer
available units : (

Thanks

on 10/6/2007 4:15 PM DonC said the following:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living. Alas,
that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My typical
unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights that
would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and fewer
available units : (

Thanks


Build a large vented cupola on the roof?


--

Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
To email, remove the double zeroes after @

"willshak" wrote in message
...
on 10/6/2007 4:15 PM DonC said the following:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas, that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My
typical unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights
that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer available units : (

Thanks


Build a large vented cupola on the roof?


Good one. That's on my list of ideas.

DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living. Alas,
that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My typical
unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights that
would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and fewer
available units : (

Thanks



Being in AZ I would consider a swamp (evaporative) cooler. A downdraft
model would easily install on a flat roof, and give you cooling when
needed, not just at night. I'll bet most of your neighbors have one,
(or A/C).

"Reed" wrote in message
...
DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas, that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My
typical unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights
that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer available units : (

Thanks



Being in AZ I would consider a swamp (evaporative) cooler. A downdraft
model would easily install on a flat roof, and give you cooling when
needed, not just at night. I'll bet most of your neighbors have one, (or
A/C).

Yes we have AC. Some -- but closer to a "few" rather than most -- have
swamp coolers but they're simply a form of air cooling limited to about 20
degrees of cooling. When temperature get over 100, 20 degrees isn't enough.

But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves" existing
cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.

On Oct 6, 7:18 pm, "DonC" wrote:
"Reed" wrote in message

...



DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas, that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My
typical unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights
that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer available units : (

Thanks

Being in AZ I would consider a swamp (evaporative) cooler. A downdraft
model would easily install on a flat roof, and give you cooling when
needed, not just at night. I'll bet most of your neighbors have one, (or
A/C).

Yes we have AC. Some -- but closer to a "few" rather than most -- have
swamp coolers but they're simply a form of air cooling limited to about 20
degrees of cooling. When temperature get over 100, 20 degrees isn't enough.

But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves" existing
cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.

A WH fan will move your conditioned air into the great outdoors, won't
it? Unless you're talking about a recirculating type fan, which you
already have on your AC. Nice weather we're having now, eh? Tom

On Oct 6, 7:38 pm, tom wrote:
On Oct 6, 7:18 pm, "DonC" wrote:



"Reed" wrote in message

...

DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas, that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My
typical unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights
that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer available units : (

Thanks

Being in AZ I would consider a swamp (evaporative) cooler. A downdraft
model would easily install on a flat roof, and give you cooling when
needed, not just at night. I'll bet most of your neighbors have one, (or
A/C).

Yes we have AC. Some -- but closer to a "few" rather than most -- have
swamp coolers but they're simply a form of air cooling limited to about 20
degrees of cooling. When temperature get over 100, 20 degrees isn't enough.

But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves" existing
cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.

A WH fan will move your conditioned air into the great outdoors, won't
it? Unless you're talking about a recirculating type fan, which you
already have on your AC. Nice weather we're having now, eh? Tom

Oops, just re-read your initial post, and will recommend the swamp
cooler. The blower will push cooler nighttime air just fine, and save
lotsa bucks over the AC during those in-between seasonal warm
spells . Tom

"tom" wrote in message
oups.com...
On Oct 6, 7:18 pm, "DonC" wrote:
"Reed" wrote in message

...



DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house
fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas, that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics.
My
typical unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so
a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights
that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting?
My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer available units : (

Thanks

Being in AZ I would consider a swamp (evaporative) cooler. A downdraft
model would easily install on a flat roof, and give you cooling when
needed, not just at night. I'll bet most of your neighbors have one,
(or
A/C).

Yes we have AC. Some -- but closer to a "few" rather than most -- have
swamp coolers but they're simply a form of air cooling limited to about
20
degrees of cooling. When temperature get over 100, 20 degrees isn't
enough.

But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves"
existing
cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.

A WH fan will move your conditioned air into the great outdoors, won't
it? Unless you're talking about a recirculating type fan, which you
already have on your AC. Nice weather we're having now, eh? Tom


A WH fan will allow you to turn your AC off and save a lot of $$$. Are you
saying that expensive AC is better than drawing natures cool air through
your house?

"DonC" wrote in message
But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves"
existing cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.


I hope you mean instead of AC, not supplementing. You don't run both at the
same time do you?

As for the flat roof, how much space do you have up there above the joists?
How much venting? It may be possible, but you may be better off looking at
the mushroom cap type of roof ventilator.

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message
t...

"DonC" wrote in message
But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves"
existing cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.


I hope you mean instead of AC, not supplementing. You don't run both at
the same time do you?

As for the flat roof, how much space do you have up there above the
joists? How much venting? It may be possible, but you may be better off
looking at the mushroom cap type of roof ventilator.


I guess I wasn't very clear on that. By supplementing I meant using cool
air during the night and early morning so as to delay turning the AC on --
if turning it on at all. If the wind is blowing the fan isn't really needed.
But that's not usually the case. The fan just gets things moving.

There's 2x12s so I guess that's 11 1/2" +/-. I'm not sure a typical
ventilator pulls enough CFM. A typical WH fan is rated 3000 to 4000 CFM.

An example of the economies of a WH fan using Atlanta as an example (The
savings would be much greater here -- south of Tucson):

.. Operating a properly sized 2-ton air
conditioner with a seasonal energy
efficiency ratio (SEER) of 10 in Atlanta,
Georgia, costs over $250 per cooling
season (1,250 hours), based on
8.5¢/kWh, or roughly 20¢ per hour
of runtime.

.. 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.

on 10/7/2007 12:47 AM DonC said the following:
"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message
t...

"DonC" wrote in message

But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves"
existing cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.


I hope you mean instead of AC, not supplementing. You don't run both at
the same time do you?

As for the flat roof, how much space do you have up there above the
joists? How much venting? It may be possible, but you may be better off
looking at the mushroom cap type of roof ventilator.



I guess I wasn't very clear on that. By supplementing I meant using cool
air during the night and early morning so as to delay turning the AC on --
if turning it on at all. If the wind is blowing the fan isn't really needed.
But that's not usually the case. The fan just gets things moving.

There's 2x12s so I guess that's 11 1/2" +/-. I'm not sure a typical
ventilator pulls enough CFM. A typical WH fan is rated 3000 to 4000 CFM.

An example of the economies of a WH fan using Atlanta as an example (The
savings would be much greater here -- south of Tucson):

.. Operating a properly sized 2-ton air
conditioner with a seasonal energy
efficiency ratio (SEER) of 10 in Atlanta,
Georgia, costs over $250 per cooling
season (1,250 hours), based on
8.5¢/kWh, or roughly 20¢ per hour
of runtime.

.. 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.


I have a whole house fan and CA, and we use the fan for a number of
reasons other than getting cool night air in the house. Did you ever
burn something in the kitchen and the whole house smells or fills with
smoke? The fan will clean out the smell and smoke in a short time.
I let the dog (large Golden Retriever) out one night and she came back
in after having an encounter with a skunk. This was 12 AM at night and
we spent the next hour washing her in the tub with tomato sauce, tomato
soup, ketchup, or anything else we could find with tomatoes in it. The
fan cleaned 'most' of the smell out.
In the case of having an accessible attic. In the summer, when the attic
is about 130º F (I have a black roof with no rafter insulation, but
soffit and gable vents), I turn the fan on and blow the hot air out of
the attic before going up there, and leave it on while I'm up there. It
saves getting drenched with sweat and having to take another shower.


..--

Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
To email, remove the double zeroes after @

"DonC" wrote in message

There's 2x12s so I guess that's 11 1/2" +/-. I'm not sure a typical
ventilator pulls enough CFM. A typical WH fan is rated 3000 to 4000 CFM.

An example of the economies of a WH fan using Atlanta as an example (The
savings would be much greater here -- south of Tucson):

There may be space between the ceiling and the roof. In my last house, it
was pitched from about 3 feet+ at the front to 1 foot + at the back. If
yours is like that, you can vent the fan into the space by adding enough
venting to it. Worth checking out.

An exhaust fan will require intake air. This can be as simple as
opening a window or using operable louvers opened when the fan
unit comes on. The exhaust fan can be mounted in a window, cut
into a sidewall, punched through a roof. A roof penetration
requires the most to keep it rain tight.

Knock your lights out he
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/start.shtml

Roof mount:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/productIndex.shtml?from=Search&newSrch=yes&operato r=keywordSearch&search_type=keyword&action=Go%21&Q ueryString=roof+top+exhaust&submit.x=0&submit.y=0

Wall mount:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/productIndex.shtml?operator=prodIndexRefinementSea rch&originalValue=exhaust+fan&L1=Wall-Mount
--
______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)




"DonC" wrote in message
...

"Reed" wrote in message
...
DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a
whole-house fan. They significantly reduce AC costs and make
for comfortable living. Alas, that was while I lived in
Michigan in houses that had attics. My typical unit included
a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up
roof so a typical attic unit won't work. But we still have
frequent cool nights that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar
setting? My research so far has been disappointing -- no
variable speed fans and fewer available units : (

Thanks



Being in AZ I would consider a swamp (evaporative) cooler. A
downdraft model would easily install on a flat roof, and give
you cooling when needed, not just at night. I'll bet most of
your neighbors have one, (or A/C).

Yes we have AC. Some -- but closer to a "few" rather than
most -- have swamp coolers but they're simply a form of air
cooling limited to about 20 degrees of cooling. When temperature
get over 100, 20 degrees isn't enough.

But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan
"moves" existing cool air supplementing AC at a much, much
cheaper cost.

"DanG" wrote in message
...
An exhaust fan will require intake air. This can be as simple as opening
a window or using operable louvers opened when the fan unit comes on. The
exhaust fan can be mounted in a window, cut into a sidewall, punched
through a roof. A roof penetration requires the most to keep it rain
tight.

Knock your lights out he
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/start.shtml

Roof mount:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/productIndex.shtml?from=Search&newSrch=yes&operato r=keywordSearch&search_type=keyword&action=Go%21&Q ueryString=roof+top+exhaust&submit.x=0&submit.y=0

Wall mount:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/productIndex.shtml?operator=prodIndexRefinementSea rch&originalValue=exhaust+fan&L1=Wall-Mount
--
______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)


Good stuff! Variable speed too! Only negative I see off-hand is the price.
The roof top unit I'd need would run about $450 + shipping. I'd also need a
speed controller ($20?) -- they've discontinued offering them! And
shutters, ductwork and roof curb. But it's certainly doable.

Thanks




"DonC" wrote in message
...

"Reed" wrote in message
...
DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas, that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My
typical unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so
a typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool
nights that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer available units : (

Thanks



Being in AZ I would consider a swamp (evaporative) cooler. A downdraft
model would easily install on a flat roof, and give you cooling when
needed, not just at night. I'll bet most of your neighbors have one, (or
A/C).

Yes we have AC. Some -- but closer to a "few" rather than most -- have
swamp coolers but they're simply a form of air cooling limited to about
20 degrees of cooling. When temperature get over 100, 20 degrees isn't
enough.

But we're talking about a different animal here. A WH fan "moves"
existing cool air supplementing AC at a much, much cheaper cost.

On Oct 6, 4:15 pm, "DonC" wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living. Alas,
that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My typical
unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights that
would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and fewer
available units : (

Thanks

Condo board is going to have a lot to say about cutting holes and
adding electric loads, I should think.
Check the rules first.
T

On Oct 6, 9:18 pm, " wrote:
On Oct 6, 4:15 pm, "DonC" wrote:





Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living. Alas,
that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My typical
unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights that
would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and fewer
available units : (

Thanks

Condo board is going to have a lot to say about cutting holes and
adding electric loads, I should think.
Check the rules first.

That's what I was thinking too. I'd check around first with any
neighbors and see what you can find out regarding anything similar
that has been done and how it got approved. Unless this has been
done before, you may find that you are going to have a tough time
convincing a condo board to OK cutting big holes in a flat roof for a
fan.

wrote in message
ps.com...
On Oct 6, 9:18 pm, " wrote:
On Oct 6, 4:15 pm, "DonC" wrote:





Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas,
that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My
typical
unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so
a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights
that
would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer
available units : (

Thanks

Condo board is going to have a lot to say about cutting holes and
adding electric loads, I should think.
Check the rules first.

That's what I was thinking too. I'd check around first with any
neighbors and see what you can find out regarding anything similar
that has been done and how it got approved. Unless this has been
done before, you may find that you are going to have a tough time
convincing a condo board to OK cutting big holes in a flat roof for a
fan.

Condo has no control re what I do with my roof. They're limited to control
of exterior architecture, exterior paint colors and landscaping. THANK GOD!
We have no condo Nazis here : )

On 10/6/2007 3:15 PM, DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living. Alas,
that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My typical
unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights that
would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and fewer
available units : (

Thanks






Over here when I was a kid we had a whole house fan in a window. It's
just a small attic unit mounted vertically. They don't have to be
centrally located, just on the other side of the house. Open the window
the fan is in and open enough others to form a draft (something my
grandma tried to stay out of).

At night, we only opened bedroom windows. I still can't sleep with a
fan blowing on me. :-)
--
Ted
I wasn't born in Texas but
I got back here as soon as I could


When the winds of change blow hard enough, the most
trivial of things can become deadly projectiles.

"xPosTech" wrote in message
...
On 10/6/2007 3:15 PM, DonC wrote:
Hi all,

In every house I've owned, until now, I've installed a whole-house fan.
They significantly reduce AC costs and make for comfortable living.
Alas, that was while I lived in Michigan in houses that had attics. My
typical unit included a twist timer and variable speed motor.

Now we live in southeastern AZ in a condo with a flat built-up roof so a
typical attic unit won't work. But we still have frequent cool nights
that would we could benefit from.

Anybody here have any experience with WH fans in a similar setting? My
research so far has been disappointing -- no variable speed fans and
fewer available units : (

Thanks




Over here when I was a kid we had a whole house fan in a window. It's
just a small attic unit mounted vertically. They don't have to be
centrally located, just on the other side of the house. Open the window
the fan is in and open enough others to form a draft (something my grandma
tried to stay out of).

At night, we only opened bedroom windows. I still can't sleep with a fan
blowing on me. :-)
--
Ted

A typical WH fan is 24" to 36" square and move 3200 to 7000 CFM.

Link to WH fans: http://tinyurl.com/28cn5f

replying to DonC, Bonnie Kimble wrote:
Did you ever find a solution for your whole house fan on a flat roof? I am
looking for that now for N. AZ house we're building. Thanks in advance for
any info.

--
for full context, visit https://www.homeownershub.com/mainte...se-255907-.htm

Bonnie Kimble m wrote

Did you ever find a solution for your whole house fan on a flat roof? I
am looking for that now for N. AZ house we're building.

We do it this way
https://jhc.com.au/air-conditioning/...vaporative-air

Usually called a swamp cooler in the USA. They have separate
controls for the water spray over the pads and for the fan so
can be used with just the fan for what you want to do.

for full context, visit
https://www.homeownershub.com/mainte...se-255907-.htm

On Monday, January 28, 2019 at 2:04:47 PM UTC-5, Rod Speed wrote:
Bonnie Kimble m wrote

Did you ever find a solution for your whole house fan on a flat roof? I
am looking for that now for N. AZ house we're building.

We do it this way
https://jhc.com.au/air-conditioning/...vaporative-air

Usually called a swamp cooler in the USA. They have separate
controls for the water spray over the pads and for the fan so
can be used with just the fan for what you want to do.

for full context, visit
https://www.homeownershub.com/mainte...se-255907-.htm

A swamp cooler isn't a whole house fan, ****wit.

On 1/28/2019 12:14 PM, Bonnie Kimble wrote:
replying to DonC, Bonnie Kimble wrote:
Did you ever find a solution for your whole house fan on a flat roof?Â* I am
looking for that now for N. AZ house we're building.Â* Thanks in advance for
any info.


Any whole house fan can work installed in the ceiling. you just have to
be sure you have venting. Add a vent or enouh soffit venting to take
care of the air blowing into the space above the ceilings.