Since most people these days have air conditioning, ceiling fans are not used nearly as much as they used to be. But they should be -- perhaps now more than ever -- because air conditioning and fans create synergy when used together.
With air conditioning, the air within your home is much cooler than your own body temperature. The cool air absorbs heat from your body, which is what makes you feel cool.
A ceiling fan, however, causes much more of that cool air to reach your skin, which makes you feel even cooler. Note that the temperature of the air does not change with a ceiling fan, even though it does feel cooler. In most homes, using a fan in this way makes the room feel about 4 degrees colder.
As a result, you can set the A/C thermostat 4 degrees warmer -- without giving up a single degree of comfort. The energy savings that come from turning your thermostat up far outweigh the small amount of electricity used by a fan. On mild days in our part of the country, using fans may mean that your A/C will not need to turn on at all.
To really save energy from this arrangement, you need to treat your ceiling fans like you treat lightbulbs, turning them off every time you leave a room. Since fans do not change the air temperature, there is no additional cooling benefit provided by having them running in empty rooms. Choosing fans that are Energy Star rated can also help you maximize your savings.
For other ways to save energy and save money on your cooling or heating expenses, contact us at Rodenhiser Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning. With more than 80 years of experience serving the Route 495/128 area, we are the company to choose for all of your home comfort needs.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about air conditioners and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Solutions Guide.
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