The fact that ceiling fans help you keep cool in summer is fairly common knowledge, but did you know that you can reverse your ceiling fan blade rotation to make your home even more comfortable year-round? Reversing the spin of your ceiling fan depending on the season provides year-round comfort, and can reduce your energy costs.
In summer, your fan should be rotating in the “reverse” direction (that’s counter-clockwise, assuming it was insta
lled correctly). In winter, changing the spin to a “forward,” or clockwise, direction helps redistribute warm air into your living spaces where room occupants can feel it. Here’s how it works:
- In summer – A counter-clockwise spin on your ceiling fan creates a downward breeze, essentially a “wind-chill” effect, which makes the room feel cooler. This allows you to raise the thermostats a few degrees and use your air conditioner less, which saves money.
- In winter – Heat rises. A ceiling fan gently spinning clockwise pulls cooler air from the lower part of the room upward, displacing warm air that has risen to the ceiling and redistributing it down into your living space. Sensing the warmer air, the thermostat won’t signal the furnace to kick on quite so soon, and you’ll save money on heating.
Most ceiling fans have a small switch on the metal housing that allows you to reverse your ceiling fan blade rotation. Just make sure the fan is off before you hit the switch to avoid injury.
It’s important to remember that the fan’s summer operation doesn’t really change the temperature in a room; it just makes it feel cooler. So there’s no need to leave fans running around the clock; just when someone’s in the room. Turning a fan on when you enter a room and turning it off again when you leave is a summertime money saver, especially since fans use about as much electricity as a light bulb – far less than your central A/C.
To learn more about heating and cooling efficiently, contact Geisel Heating, Air Conditioning and Plumbing. We’ve been serving the Greater Cleveland area for more than 75 years.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Cleveland, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about ceiling fans and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
For those Do it Yourselfers who would rather take control of your own indoor comfort, you can shop our online store for replacement parts, products and accessories!
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Benefits of Ceiling Fans - Geisel Heating, Air Conditioning and Plumbing
[…] warmth to reduce the furnace heating load. Heat naturally rises and accumulates at the ceiling. Ceiling fan rotation can be reversed in winter to blow upwards, continuously recirculating the accumulating layer of hot […]