What Role Does a House Fan Play in a Cooling System?

Much of the focus when choosing cooling equipment for a home falls on the size of the AC unit and the style of the ceiling fans to be used. If this is the case in your home, you are missing a key source of cooling. While an AC unit can create cool air for use in your home, a whole-house fan can help to reduce the amount of electricity you use to meet your cooling needs. 

How an AC Unit Works

An AC unit exploits a phenomenon known as phase conversion to cool a home. In basic terms, phase conversion refers to a substance morphing from a solid to a liquid and then from a liquid to a gas. When the substance evaporates, it can absorb heat from its surroundings. The refrigerant in your AC system vaporizes when it hits the evaporator coils and then absorbs heat from the air in your home. Unfortunately, an AC unit is a closed system, so the refrigerant in the system can only absorb so much heat before it has to cycle to the condenser coils to expel heat, return to a liquid, and thus be ready to start the process over. What this means for you the homeowner is that an AC unit can struggle to keep up with the demand for cooling. This is seen when it takes several hours to cool your home down even after the sun sets in the evening. 

How a House Fan Works

In contrast to a ceiling fan, which is designed to move air around one room, a house fan vents hot air out of your entire house. To accomplish this, workers must install the house fan between the attic and the ceiling in the top floor of your house. When the sun falls, you can open your windows and replace the hot air in your home with cool outside air in a matter of minutes. Because a house fan does not have to run two fans and a compressor as is the case with an AC unit, it uses much less electricity. In fact, a house fan uses 90% less electricity than an AC unit. 

By installing a house fan in your house, you can use it to keep your house cool through the evening and morning hours and thus reduce the amount of electricity you use as compared to running an AC unit. If you are sick of paying too much to cool your home, it just might be time to install a house fan. 

Contact companies such as MD AIR Heating and Cooling, LLC for more information about how various HVAC systems work. 

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