What is a Whole House Fan?

   Every year in Sacramento, I get questions about how whole house fans work.  Some people move into homes that have a whole house fan already.  They don't even think about it when they purchase the home, but once they are in the house and turn on the whole house fan, they love it!  

   In the Spring and Fall, I always start thinking about opening up the front door and the windows in my house and getting some of that fresh breeze coming in.  When you open the windows in one room and then again in another room, the air from outside starts passively coming into your home.  That air comes from the outside and slowly starts coming into your home as a very light, wispy breeze.  It feels good!  

I remember growing up as a kid in the Midwest.  Mom would have the windows open, and if I was near the window, I could actually feel the air entering the home.  Maybe I didn't feel it so much on the home's interior, but eventually, the outdoor temperature and the indoor temperature would eventually equalize after a few hours. That's how my mom liked to have it, and it's even nostalgic to think about those days. 

Now let's imagine you have a fan mounted on the ceiling, pointing into your attic.  This fan wouldn't be pointing down into your house; it would blow air into your attic.  That means the air has to come from somewhere, right?  With a whole house fan, you open the windows of your home and turn that fan on.  Now instead of having passive airflow coming into the home, you can bring that outdoor air in more actively.  In a matter of minutes, you can bring the temperature outside into your home and equalize that temperature evenly and effectively.  

In Sacramento homes in the downtown area, homes were designed to cool the house with the cooler air from below the house and have that air vent out the top of the house.  This worked effectively for years!  Amazing technology if you think about it.  Whole house fans were introduced in our area as modern technology, and mandates from the state forced builders to build homes tighter with less air infiltration.  Whole house fans are still the most popular way to cool your house down when the temperature outside is cooler than the temperature inside.

The options you have for whole house fans are the mainstream style of belt-driven fans with the slats on them that open and close with the fan turning on or off.  They are a little louder than the other styles, but I have noticed they move an exceptional amount of air with just one unit mounted in your ceiling.

The next option you have is Quiet Cool whole house fans. They are a little more advanced in technology and energy consumption.  The fan isn't heard as much, so it's much quieter than the traditional whole house fans you see in many homes since the 1950s.  The reason it's so much quieter is that there is a large duct that connects the opening in your ceiling and the can that is mounted in that opening to the true fan that is typically suspended from the rafters in your attic about 6 feet away.  These units do save more money to operate and have two, three, and four speeds on them to dial in just that right amount of airflow you are looking for.  I wish I would have gotten bigger models with the Quiet Cool whole house fans I installed in my home. I've noticed that the airflow is a fraction of the air the Triangle whole house fans move. It's not a huge difference, but it is noticeable, especially when I'm trying to move a lot of air quickly, say one hour before bedtime, and I'm noticing it's 65 to 70 degrees at night, and it's still 82 degrees in my upstairs bedroom.  Uh oh!  Now I need to move air quickly to cool this room. That's when I wished I would have upsized my Quiet Cool whole house fan to a slightly larger one.

Overall, whole house fans are a blessing in disguise.  People who have them in their homes already know the benefits of having a whole house fan.  In Sacramento, my customers always remind me that the "Delta breeze" is so nice to have on summer nights because they can shut their AC off and just turn on the whole house fan.  

Quiet Cool whole house fans will cost a little more than the traditional-style whole house fans, so that is something to consider as well.  With both of these whole house fans, though, you are going to pay back your investment within a matter of a few years. And you know that now since you know how much less expensive it is to run your whole house fan compared to your AC system! Do some research on whole house fans and determine which style is better for you.

Good luck with your project!  Contact Fox Family Heating and Air Conditioning in the Sacramento, CA area at 916-877-1577.  You can text or call that number to set up an appointment for us to come out and look at your home and attic space to determine the best fit for your home and budget.