Depending on the direction of their blades, ceiling fans offer an inexpensive way to enhance efforts to keep rooms of your home warm or cool. They use very little electricity and allow homeowners to turn the thermostat up or down, depending on the season, and save money on energy bills. Learn how ceiling fan direction helps keep your home’s occupants more comfortable.
Fans and the Wind Chill Effect
Be sure when you turn the fans on during the summer months that the blades are rotating in a counter-clockwise direction. This direction creates a breeze that, by means of the wind chill effect, makes people feel cooler. How does the wind chill effect work? As moisture on the skin evaporates, a breeze against the damp skin makes us feel cooler. Because of this effect, a homeowner can turn the thermostat down, often as much as four degrees in summer, and the room’s occupants will still feel cool.
Fans to Enhance Heating
In the winter, ceiling fans should be reversed to run clockwise. Blades running clockwise lift up cool air that’s settled at floor level while pushing heated air that has risen to the ceiling toward the walls and down, warming the room’s occupants. The ceiling fan’s effect in winter allows homeowners to turn the thermostat down as much as four degrees, while a room’s occupants still feel warm.
Maintaining the Ceiling Fan
Most ceiling fans require little maintenance and will last for several years. Wipe the blades off before the heating or cooling season begins so any dust that has collected won’t be scattered. If your fan has a port where the bearings can be oiled, lubricate them, though most ceiling fans have closed bearings.
For more about ceiling fan direction, or to learn how to keep your home cooler more economically, see Senica Air Conditioning, Inc.’s air conditioning services information, or call 866-881-5935.
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