Using Ceiling Fans For Year-Round Comfort, Even When It’s Cooler

Did you know that your ceiling fans do a lot more than simply providing a cooling breeze during hot weather? In addition to providing comfort during the summer, they also help lower your energy bills. And believe it or not, using ceiling fans during cooler months will do this as well.ceiling fans yuma arizona

During the long cooling season in Southwest Arizona …
During the several months of hot weather, using your ceiling fans seems like a no-brainer. The breeze they create provides a wind-chill effect on occupants of rooms, making the temperature feel a few degrees cooler than it really is. Because the ceiling fans make your home feel cooler, it allows you to keep your thermostat a few degrees higher than you might have otherwise. This will save on your cooling bills.

During Yuma’s short heating season …
Using your ceiling fans during the two or three months of heating will actually make your home feel more comfortable. A switch located on every ceiling fan controls the direction that the fan blades rotate. For summer cooling, they rotate counterclockwise. But when it gets cold, you can flick the switch to clockwise rotation. This will blow air upwards, displacing warm air that has collected near the ceiling. That air will circulate back down into the lower parts of the room where occupants can feel it. As a result of the improved circulation of warm air, you can turn down the thermostat a few degrees and cut down on heating costs, as well as wear and tear on your heating equipment.

In our climate, where during some months you’re both heating and cooling, if you use the ceiling fan trick, you’ll want to make sure you keep close track of which way the fan blades are rotating. You won’t want to be blowing cool air down on people when you’re trying to heat your house, or vice versa.

Make sure that you’re using ceiling fans all year round for improved comfort and energy savings. For more information, please contact us at Hansberger Refrigeration and Electric Company.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Yuma, Arizona 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.

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