As soon as it gets hot outside, you’re probably reaching for your thermostat to kick your air conditioner into high gear. While your air conditioner does a great job of keeping your Springfield home cool, it can cause some pain in your pocketbook when your utility bill comes due. To help relieve this pain, there are several routes you can take. One of the most popular is installing ceiling fans in your home. To find out if ceiling fans are really worth your while, though, here is a basic explanation of how ceiling fans and your air conditioner work together to help keep you comfortable.
How Ceiling Fans Work
If you’ve ever been outside on a hot day, you’ve probably appreciated a cool breeze blowing through. When it comes to temperature, though, is moving air any different than air that’s still? The answer is that all air, whether moving or not, is the same temperature.
Why, then, is a breeze so effective at cooling you down? The answer is that moving air feels cooler than stagnant air because, as it moves, it is carrying heat away from your body. Since your body maintains a constant temperature of approximately 98.6-degrees, the air directly touching your body is warmed more than the surrounding air. If this cushion of air is disturbed by moving air, your body will begin to cool down.
Bring this principle into your home, then, and you’ll see that ceiling fans can be effective at keeping you cool. So long as the moving air is reaching you where you are in the room, this air will help carry some of your body heat away and thus lower your body temperature.
Helpful or Not?
This idea of carrying away body heat means that a ceiling fan can be quite effective in aiding your air conditioning. After all, the entire purpose of your air conditioning is to keep you cool. If another device, such as a ceiling fan, can perform the same task using a different method, then it’s something good to try.
Using a ceiling fan in conjunction with your air conditioner can have many benefits. Since your body feels cooler, you won’t have to run your air conditioner as often. This means that your utility bills won’t be as high, and you won’t have to sacrifice any comfort. Plus, by running your air conditioner less, your system will likely last longer since it won’t receive as much wear and tear.
Ceiling fans can also help to draw in outside air if your windows are open. This can help to replace stagnant air in your home that is sometimes filled with harmful pollutants. Even if your windows aren’t open, the motion of a ceiling fan can help stir the air, freshening it up in the process.
A Word of Warning
Given the powerful cooling effect of a ceiling fan, you may think that you need to run your fan at all times. However, at Jco Heating A/C Electrical, we want you to know that running your fan all the time, in addition to your air conditioner, will lead to higher, rather than lower, utility bills. This is because the cooling effect of a ceiling fan is only realized when you are in the room where the ceiling fan is located.
Remember the example of the breeze mentioned earlier. In that example, the breeze had to move past your body in order to carry your body heat away. The same is true for a ceiling fan. If you can’t feel the moving air on your skin, then the ceiling fan is doing nothing to help cool you down. Instead, you’re simply wasting energy to run the ceiling fan while you also use energy to run your air conditioner. Therefore, if you’re going to use your ceiling fan, make sure you’re in the room when it’s running.
Trusted Expertise
When it comes to HVAC service, you need an expert you can trust to give you good information so that you don’t waste money and time. That’s why at Jco Heating A/C Electrical, we pledge to serve you with integrity in everything we do. Whether we’re repairing, maintaining, or replacing your air conditioner or furnace or we’re taking care of your commercial heating and cooling needs, you can be sure that you’ll be treated with honesty and fairness.
Jco Heating A/C Electrical in Springfield, OR, has been serving this community for many years and is still proudly owned and managed by two brothers who enjoy seeing people treated right. That’s why we’re proud to be listed on Angie’s List and why we’re a Daikin 3D Dealer. Our customers love us, too, which is why you’ll find plenty of glowing reviews on our website from people who have had their comfort improved. If you want to take care of your home comfort needs, give us a call at Jco Heating A/C Electrical today.
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