Summer is just around the corner, and San Jose residents will soon be seeing higher temperatures and higher energy bills. With the right home cooling strategy in place, that doesn’t have to be the case. If you would like to give your air conditioner and wallet a break this year and enjoy fresh air at the touch of a button, consider the benefits of a whole-house fan.
How Do Whole House Fans Work?
Whole-house fans pull fresh outdoor air into your home through open windows. They’re ideally suited for regions with moderate spring, summer and fall weather—like our San Jose area. Here’s how they work:
- A large fan is installed between the ceiling and attic or completely concealed inside the attic with a ducted system.
- When the outdoor weather is at a desirable temperature, you open a few windows and turn on the fan.
- Fresh air ventilation is pulled through your entire home.
- The fan pulls the fresh air into the attic where it exhausts through roof and attic vents.
- In a ducted system, airflow is pulled through return grilles.
Advantages of Whole-House Fans
If fresh air and lower energy bills sounds appealing, a whole-house fan may be what your home needs. The Sacramento Municipal Utility District estimates that whole-house fans use 10 percent of the energy that air conditioners use. That’s a 90 percent discount for cooling your home with fresh air. You will also enhance indoor air quality by replacing stuffy indoor air with fresh outdoor air.
Disadvantages of Whole-House Fans
Unfiltered whole-home ventilation may not be for everyone in your household. Whole-house fans pull unfiltered air directly from outside. So, if there are household members with respiratory ailments that may be exacerbated by unfiltered airflow, you’ll need to give the decision to install a whole-house fan extra thought.
To learn more, visit our website for more in-depth information about a whole-house fan and most HVAC topics, or just give us a call at (408) 868-5500. Valley Heating, Cooling, Electrical has served residents in San Jose and Santa Cruz areas for more than 50 years.
