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Good! I'm glad Blazerj posted the link about changing the fan direction in the summer.
I use both a/c and ceiling fans, depending on several factors. When I first home, I use the fans to get out the worst of the heat and make dinner. I put on the a/c later in the evening and let it run all night. In the morning, I turn it off and use the ceiling fans, turning them off when I go to work.
The house generally stays in the upper 70s/low 80s, depending on the outside temperature while I'm at work.
There is a chart somewhere from research that I think the Navy did to determine how to best deal with the conditions on a submarine.
They determined that simply having air MOVING in an environment with relative humidity below 60% folks were fully capable of performing their duties comfortably at even 78ºF but if the humidity increased above 65% even having lots of air movement made the temps above 73º feel "too hot". In still air the "gold standard" is 72º and 50% humidity. That 5-6º and 5-15% humidity difference may not seem like much but whether you are running a submarine or paying an electric bill it makes a HUGE difference on the demands of the HVAC...
So the take away is that IF you use the central air primarily to reduce humidity and keep the temps to a pretty warm 78º but use ceiling fans t keep the air in the room(s) you are sitting in MOVING you can save LOTS compared to running the AC to a lower temperature...
One thing to note is that often residential AC units do not do a good job of humidification control (other than the dehumidification that results due to achieving the cooling setpoint required). If you don't have the newer, units with variable speed compressors etc. keeping a thermostat setpoint of 78°F in a house is often not going to do a whole lot of dehumidification simply due to run times and coil temperatures and other factors. Now, 65% RH is a fairly high number inside a house, so chances are youre able to stay below that anyway if your unit isn't too over-sized.
That approach however does work fairly well in more commercial settings with digital scroll compressor for DX or chilled water where you can dehumidify easier. That's essentially the approach that Big Ass Fans use to claim energy savings in their case studies.
A great tool for this is Berkley's ASHRAE 55 Thermal Comfort calculator. It lets you adjust clothing levels, activity levels (sitting/typing, walking, light machine work, gym, etc.), temperatures, air speeds, humidity, etc. and see if you fall within the acceptable margins of comfort proven over numerous studies over the years:
You'll save a little with the strategy of a warmer house w/ ceiling fans but my concern would be the sleeping hours or if you have humidity to contend with. If you don't mind sleeping on a warm bed you'll be fine. Setting the stat down just before bedtime won't help much as the thermal mass of the house contents will take longer to cool off than the air temp.
If you live in a humid area, your preferred hvac contractor should be able to set your recirculated air flow for proper humidity control. The cooling would obviously need to be running for any dehumidification.
Neither ceiling fans nor air conditioners "use up" energy, they just convert electrical energy into work and heat. (Unless you are converting energy to mass at the rate e = mc^2, in which case I need to be the one asking you about technical questions.)
I don't know where you are but ceiling fans do not take moisture out of he air. My husband uses our ceiling fan to sit under it after he has been outside mowing, pruning, raking, in other words he used them to cool off faster. I have allergies so I stay away from anything that blows air which usually includes any dust around.
When you are in the room in question, ceiling fans work great and allow you to keep your thermostat a few degrees higher than you would otherwise. When you aren't in the room in question, turn the fan off because it serves no purpose.
Ceiling fans allow us to keep our AC temp higher, we turn them on/off as we move through rooms. We have replaced the older fans that came with the house, one by one, to fans with dc motors which are more efficient and quieter. There aren't as many choices though and some can be found with dimmable LED lights now.
The one in the living room has a feature that goes through the speeds making it feel like a breeze. The one in the bedroom has the same feature but I use it on the lowest setting only.
I'm not a fan of AC, preferring to live without it in the NE for >30 years. I'm in SWFL and AC is a necessity for half the year. Gently moving air makes a huge difference in comfort.
What I learned, is that it's actually most effective to use a floor fan. One that will suck the cool air from the floor, and circulate it through the room. Works much better to cool a room than a ceiling fan.
What's funny, is the apartment I have now has a ceiling fan in the living space. I use my floor fan under the ceiling fan, and it ends ups turning the ceiling fan simply from the air circulation from the floor fan - so I get double benefits.
Anyway, this is the type of floor fan I use. I highly recommend the Patton fans, as they don't rattle and last about 10 years - I'm on my third one now. They come in many sizes. I'm now using a 14" one. Shop around for the best deal.
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