In the Kitchen
Executive Chef
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2004
- Messages
- 2,862
Are you supposed to let ceiling fans run all the time,except when you go out?
Ceiling Fans
- Thread starter In the Kitchen
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone that enjoys cooking.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
mrsmac
Head Chef
When we lived in Darwin which is in the tropics everyone left them on all the time even when they were out. We had them in every room even in the carport and under the back verandah and never had any problems leaving them on permanently.
VegasDramaQueen
Senior Cook
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2004
- Messages
- 316
I have 3 fans and don't leave them on all the time. My electric bill would be horrendous and it's not necessary. In the warmer weather, I leave my fans on low to circulate the air conditioned air in the room. You can leave your thermostat a couple of degrees higher when you do this. I don't put them on in the winter at all. When the weather isn't warm enough for air conditioning but too warm to be comfortable, then my fans go on medium to high.
licia
Executive Chef
We leave ours on all the time. It seems to move the air thru the house better, but we don't have upstairs. There seems to be contradictions on whether it pays or not, but the ac seems to be more consistent in our house with them on.
Aurora
Senior Cook
I have cathedral ceilings in my home in the living and dining area and in the master bedroom. I find that if I leave the ceiling fans on all the time the rooms are more comfortable. Even if I'm not home my cats appreciate the air circulation.
GB
Chief Eating Officer
We do not leave ours on all the time. Regardless of the amount of energy they use, we see no reason to waste it. We are out of our house for 10 hours or more a day. No need for it to be on during that time.
FryBoy
Washing Up
We lived in air conditioning for 29 years in an area where it routinely gets well over 100 during the summer (it was 119 there two weeks ago) and never had ceiling fans. Now we live near the beach and have no air-conditioning but we do have ceiling fans in three rooms. We turn them off except when we're in the room and it's warm.
We have one in the master bedroom that we run at night during the summer, one in the breakfast room that we run when we read the paper and have coffee in the morning during the summer, and one in the guest bedroom, which is always off unless we have an overnight guest in the summer.
I suppose that a ceiling fan might make air conditioning a bit more efficient by mixing the warm air near the ceiling with the cooler air below -- but it doesn't make much sense to me to run them when you're away.
We have one in the master bedroom that we run at night during the summer, one in the breakfast room that we run when we read the paper and have coffee in the morning during the summer, and one in the guest bedroom, which is always off unless we have an overnight guest in the summer.
I suppose that a ceiling fan might make air conditioning a bit more efficient by mixing the warm air near the ceiling with the cooler air below -- but it doesn't make much sense to me to run them when you're away.
Air circulation, home all day, very slow turning, keeping hot air from collecting in a high ceiling, better circulation of air conditioned air. Everyone needs to decide for themselves. We have our summer thermostats set for 79*--we are pretty conservation minded. Additionally DH collects the condensate from the AC for watering plants.
GB
Chief Eating Officer
So interesting you mentioned that. We just had central air installed a few weeks ago. I was trying to figure out a way to have the condensation make its way to my garden. Of course the unit is on the opposite end of the house so it will be a but tricky to figure out how to do it, but I am working on a plan.Gretchen said:
VegasDramaQueen
Senior Cook
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2004
- Messages
- 316
Gretchen: I agree that if you are home all day and you have high ceilings then it's best to leave your fans turning all the time for more comfort. I have 9 foot ceilings and when I'm not home I don't need air circulating. I turn the fans on when I come home and it does the job.
BreezyCooking
Washing Up
I never leave my ceiling fans on when I'm not home. Why? Because the one we had in our open kitchen/living/dining room area had the motor burn out. Luckily, we were home when it happened, & although it didn't produce a fire, it darn sure could have.
Except for the heat/air conditioning & refrigerator, I never EVER leave ANY electrical appliance on when I'm not home. Not worth the risk, in my opinion.
Except for the heat/air conditioning & refrigerator, I never EVER leave ANY electrical appliance on when I'm not home. Not worth the risk, in my opinion.
In the Kitchen said:
Ceiling fans work to cool YOU down, not your room. When we bought our latest ceiling fan, the brochure even included that information: "Remember: operating fans in empty rooms just wastes energy, so turn it off when you leave the room." And it is corroborated here (scroll down to "Fans in Vacant Rooms.")
FryBoy
Washing Up
BreezyCooking said:
You raise a good point. We have a very expensive Casablanca Ceiling Fan over our bed. We thought it was worth the extra money because it's the quietest fan on the market, and it has six speeds, from hardly noticeable to full hurricane. It has electronic controls that are operated from a wall-mounted unit that includes buttons for speed, reverse direction, lights, and a button that turns off all power to the unit. Turning off the power cancels the speed, direction, and light settings you've previously selected. The wall unit communicates with the fan itself by radio signals.
One night several months ago, in the dead of winter, the fan, which was off, made a strange noise and suddenly came on at full speed, scaring the holy living you-know-what out of us. I jumped out of bed, clutching my chest, and fiddled with the controls, eventually shutting it off with the master power switch. I turned the power back on and it immediately went to full speed, then died completely.
The repair guy came within a few days and said that there apparently had been a power surge that had zapped the electronic controls in the fan itself. Naturally, that design flaw (it should have a surge protector built in, IMHO) wasn't covered by the warranty, and the replacement part cost me about $165, including installation. The repairman recommended that we keep the power off when we're not using the fan, which we now do.
Given the power shortages we're now experiencing during this unusually hot summer, and the increased possibility of brown outs, black outs, and voltage surges, it seems a bit risky to run the fan when it's not needed. Of course, this problem probably doesn't affect fans with simpler, non-electronic controls.
Claire
Master Chef
This is just an aside. Several years ago we were talking about cold temperatures. An older family member said she didn't believe in wind chill factor. Having lived in North Dakota, and worked on the flight line there, believe me, wind chill exists. I bit my tongue though, didn't say a word. But my husband said it all. "XXXX, you have a ceiling fan in every room, don't you?" "Yes." "Well, you obviously believe in Wind Chill!"
I have friends in Florida who never turn off the fans. I think that is downright silly. But I do leave a fan on for my pets when I'm going to be out for a very hot afternoon. I have no central air. Having the fans and window A/C units, I cannot believe that the fans are more dangerous that the A/C units. Any appliance has some danger level. I don't think I leave anything turned on 24/7.
I have friends in Florida who never turn off the fans. I think that is downright silly. But I do leave a fan on for my pets when I'm going to be out for a very hot afternoon. I have no central air. Having the fans and window A/C units, I cannot believe that the fans are more dangerous that the A/C units. Any appliance has some danger level. I don't think I leave anything turned on 24/7.
GB said:
Our unit is in the basement so a "sump" pump was necessary for one unit to get the water to ground level. It goes in a barrel with a hose connection at the bottom. The other drips into a large watering can for the greenhouse.
And the fan installation guy's advice notwithstanding, constant air circulation in a humid house is a good thing for more than personal cooling.
Last edited:
phinz
Head Chef
All of mine stay on.
phinz said:
Good idea in the heat YOU get! Miss you around here phinz. Resurrect some of those threads you are so good at will you?
The Z
Head Chef
What about 'direction'?
Most fans have a switch so you can change direction. I remember that you use change direction depending upon the season you're in, but I can't remember which direction you use for which season.
Most fans have a switch so you can change direction. I remember that you use change direction depending upon the season you're in, but I can't remember which direction you use for which season.
Push the air down for summer and suck it up for winter I think. We only ever have our fan on in the hottest part of summer.
