QA

Question: How Do Attic Fans Work

When installed on the ceiling of your attic, they circulate the air at the top of your house. The fan takes the hot and humid air that sits in your attic, circulates it, and pushes it out of the house’s upper space. This way, hot, stale air under your roof isn’t sitting over your home. This is known as air exchange.

When should you use an attic fan?

When you turn on the fan and open the windows in the house, outside air is drawn in through the windows and up through the attic where the hot inside air is vented out of the home. Attic fans work best at night when the outside temperature cools and that air is drawn into your warm home to cool it off.

Are attic fans a waste of money?

Some of it will come from the soffit vents, and some will come from attic air leaks. If you have problems with ice dams, a LOT of air will come from attic air leaks. This means you’ll actually be sucking warm air IN to your attic. Don’t waste your money on an attic fan.

Is it OK to run an attic fan all night?

Getting the most from your AirScape Only use your fan when the outdoor air is cooler than your indoor air. Make sure your A/C is off when you run the fan to avoid wasting energy. We recommend running the whole house fan all night. The goal is to cool your entire house down, not just the air.

How does an attic roof fan work?

Attic ventilation fans help cool air your attic by pushing out the stifling hot air from inside the attic and bringing in cool air from outside. As the air leaves, it creates negative pressure behind it, sucking in cool air from below into the soffits and creating a self-repeating ventilation process.

Does an attic fan use a lot of electricity?

Attic fans are incredibly efficient. They use a fraction of the electricity your air conditioning system uses. They also decrease your need for air conditioning, which lowers your monthly utility bills.

Are attic fans a fire hazard?

“Most attic fans are put up there and forgotten,” says Kenneth Kent, deputy marshal of the Arlington County Fire Department. “They’re not inspected for years, and when they malfunction, they can start a fire.”Jul 19, 1994.

How much of a difference does an attic fan make?

The heat in an attic on a hot day can be 20 degrees Fahrenheit or higher than the outside temperature, and using an attic fan can reduce the temperature in the attic by at least 50 degrees and in the highest floor of the home by as much as 10 degrees.

How do I cool down my hot attic?

Install electric ventilators and attic fans, which remove hot air from an attic. They have thermostats that turn the fan on at a recommended preset temperature of 100-110 degrees. Alternatively, install passive vents such as gable, soffit and ridge vents, which are openings in the roof that allow hot air to escape.

Are attic fans loud?

Attic fans are great machines that can bring some refreshment by blowing out hot air. Even though we all enjoy attic fans, they are mechanical devices and sometimes they can be quite noisy and annoying. In most of the cases, the noise will appear due to some parts of attic fan getting old or by being worn out.

When should I run my attic fan in the summer?

During the summer the fan should operate anytime the attic temperature is above the comfort level desired for the indoor living quarters. For example, if the air conditioning thermostat is set to 74 degrees, the attic fan might be set to 75 degrees.

What temp should attic fan turn on?

When it comes to an attic fan’s temperature setting, it’s best to adjust it to anywhere from 90 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s impossible to state a single number because your attic can effortlessly soar above 95 degrees (on average).

What temp should attic be?

The ideal attic temperature should be no less than 60 degrees in the winter and no more than 10 to 20 degrees above the outdoor temperature in the summer. If your attic temperature climbs above 130 degrees, you may start running into issues with your energy bill, as well as the integrity of your roof.

Are attic fans automatic?

An attic fan is normally automatic. An adjustable thermostat, which is included, turns the fan on and off according to the temperature. If you have a humidistat installed, it turns the fan on and off as well according to the humidity.

Do roofers install attic fans?

Do Roofers Install Attic Fans? Roofers do install attic fans. Actually, it’s a good idea to hire a roofer to do it because the installation will require cutting a hole in the roof itself. Once the fan is installed, the area has to be sealed, and new shingles and other roofing materials may have to be added.

How does attic fan work in winter?

Attic ventilation fans offer mechanical ventilation, using a fan to draw in cool, outside air and force out warm, moist air. Air is drawn in through the attic fan and air is expelled through the roof vent system to keep your attic cooler and drier, preventing ice and moisture issues throughout the winter.

Do attic fans help cool your house?

An attic’s fan cools and ventilates the space, bringing attics to outside temperatures instead of allowing them to warm to extreme temperatures. Therefore, your air conditioning will not need to work as hard. However, an attic fan will not cool an entire house.

How hot is too hot for attic?

Hot air becomes trapped between the attic insulation and the roof without proper ventilation. Ideally, your attic should not exceed 130 degrees Fahrenheit during the summer. Problems related to attics hotter than 130 degrees: It will make it harder to cool your home in the summer.

Can you put an attic fan in a two story house?

It won’t. Whole house fans are designed to vent warm air from inside the house and to draw outside air into the house. To do this properly doors and windows need to be open, and the fan would suck every last bit of cool air the A/C system produces right outside.