Using a Whole House Fan as a "Pre-Chiller"
When the heat of late summer is here, it seems your only solution for the hot, sticky and muggy days to follow is your air conditioner. However, you might be surprised to learn your air conditioning unit isn't the only way for you to keep your home cool. There's another way to cool off your home and help you save money as well — a whole house fan.
A whole house fan is good to use in mild to moderate temperatures to supplement your air conditioner. It’s a great solution for late summer and the transition into fall.
Some whole house fans offer a galvanized steel fan assembly and low vibration direct drive design to contribute to an efficient, quiet performance. You can install your whole house fan as a joist-in or joist-out configuration, allowing you to control the fan from anywhere in your house from a smart device.
Whole House Fans Reduce Cooling Costs
A whole house fan provides an efficient way of reducing your cooling costs:
- Drawing fresh air in from the outdoors
- Expelling warmer air up into your attic
- Pushing the warm air out through the exhaust vents in your attic
Plus, certain Wi-Fi hub units come with a timer setting that will turn off your fan automatically once it reaches your desired time setting, saving you on energy costs.
Whole House Fans Work like “Pre-Chillers”
Now, for you to get the most out of your whole house fan, you'll want to operate it before you turn on your air conditioning unit. This will help you decrease your home's temperature so your air conditioner won't have to work as hard. Doing this will cost you a fraction of what your AC unit is costing you.
A whole house fan can work like a "pre-chiller" before you turn your air conditioning on or it can work as your main cooling source. You may think a pre-chiller sounds silly at first, however, if you think about it, it's really kind of genius. When your house is cooler, it means you won't have to work your air conditioning unit as hard and this will save you money and energy in the long run. Not to mention, you get to watch your energy bills drop.
A local HVAC technician can come to your home and help you decide on an ideal whole house fan for your home. Keep in mind, the size of the fan isn't everything. Bigger whole house fans are ideal to move air quickly, but weighing the larger size against things like insulation, installation requirements, cost, and appearance, could make you decide to go with a smaller fan instead. Smaller fans just may be all you need for good airflow, depending on your floor plan and needs. The HVAC professional can help you decide. Or, give us a call here at WholeHouseFan.com at 888-229-5757 and we can help answer your questions or provide you with advice on the best whole house fan solution for your unique needs.