How Can an AC Unit & a House Fan Make a Good House Cooling Duo?
An AC unit is a good way to cool a house, but it can be expensive to operate. During the evening hours, an AC unit may be overkill in the sense that there is cool air readily available outside that you can tap into to cool your home. This presents an option for homeowners who are willing and able to install a second cooling system that will allow them to pump cool air into their home. A house fan can help to do just that.
The Limits of an AC Unit
An AC unit cools a home by forcing a refrigerant to evaporate. As the refrigerant vaporizes, it will absorb heat from the air flowing over it, and this cool air then cools your home. The problem with this approach is that an AC unit can only process so much air at one time; thus, you end up pouring a lot of money into cooling your home. On the other hand, an AC unit is the best way to cool a home when both the inside and outside air are hot since it will create its own cool air.
The Advantages of a House Fan
A house fan is not a ceiling fan. Whereas, a ceiling fan simply moves air around a room, a house fan cools a house by pumping hot air out of your home and pulling cool air in. To accomplish this, workers will cut a hole in the ceiling and install the house fan so that it can pump hot air out of your home through the attic. During the hottest hours of the day, a house fan will struggle to cool your house.
On the other hand, when the outside air cools off, you can open your windows and start to pump cool air into your home. In this way, you can pump all the hot air and replace it with cool air in as few as two minutes. Also, because a house fan uses a much smaller motor than an AC unit, it requires much less electricity. This means that running your house fan when possible will help you to save money.
If you live in the north, or in a mountainous area, you may be able to cool your home with only a house fan. On the other hand, most people will be looking at using a house fan and an AC unit to complement each other. The AC fan will help to keep your home cool during the day, and cooling your home with the house fan at night will help you to save money without sacrificing comfort.
To learn more about your options, contact local air conditioning installation companies.
