Why Attic Fans Are Bad

Attic fans exhaust hot air from your attic to the outside.

Why attic fans are bad.

Attic ventilation fans whether hard wired or powered by their own solar panels seem like a low cost and effective way to help keep your house cool. Ventilation fans or powered attic ventilators are designed to cool the attic pushing out the hot attic air and rushing in a flow of cool outside air. If the attic fan isn t turning on it could be an electrical issue a problem with the thermostat or the motor of the fan that s not working. In fact that whole house fan will look like a bbq during the summertime with the use of a thermal camera as pictured above.

Most attic fans have thermostats that regulate the air cycles. However the utility of attic ventilation fans is actually quite a controversial topic. Good insulation reduces fan effectiveness. Those fans are good while they are running but the other 95 of the time when they are off or during winter time they are essentially a hole into the attic which can defeat the purpose of all of your attic insulation.

A very hot problem last week we had some warm weather for the first t. If an attic fan is properly installed it will act as an air circulator. And since the roof must be penetrated for some attic fan installations there is concern about that it may lead to water damage. Many homeowners hear about attic fans installed by friends and neighbors and want to know if an attic fan is a good idea or just a waste of money.

Let s discuss the primary concern homeowners have about attic fan installation. With the summer season upon us now is a good time to review an uncomfortable topic. How an attic fan works. The downside of attic ventilation fans.

Pulling hot air out of the attic and cool air into the attic. Hot attics and why traditional exhaust fans don t work well enough to cool them off. These fans are designed to remove excess heat from your attic which in theory is supposed to lessen the load on the air conditioning in your home. Why attic fans don t work well and what to do instead.

Most homeowner s will find that the overall cost of an attic fan and the thermostat regulator is much less expensive than subsequent air conditioning bills in the summer months.