I have a fairly strange confession to make – I don’t like air conditioning. I need to clarify, though, by admitting that I live in the Midwest. This summer, we might have had two weeks of temperatures in the high 80s. I know that if I lived in a warmer climate, air conditioning would be essential – much like heat is for me from October to April.
But, on a warm (not blazing hot) day, I would much prefer opening the windows of my home and getting fresh air as compared to leaving every window shut and cranking the AC up.
And on warm days when there’s no breeze blowing through my rooms, I turn on our fans. Box fans, oscillating fans, and ceiling fans; we have them all.
Image courtesy of jiggoja/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Fresh air benefits
My preference for fresh air and fans is actually a healthy choice. Since the air inside a home can be polluted 2 to 5 times more than air outside a home, it’s important to open your windows every day to remove some of the air pollution.
Recirculating the polluted air inside your home can cause or aggravate allergic reactions, asthma, congestion, coughing, sneezing, dizziness, eye and skin irritations, fatigue, headaches, nausea, and respiratory tract infections.
Getting some fresh air – and circulating that fresh air with a fan – can help your health. Some other simple tips to reduce the pollution inside your home include using essential oils instead of artificial air fresheners, using soy wax or beeswax candles instead of paraffin candles, and using safe cleaning products (Norwex, anyone?) instead of chemical cleaners. Using an air purifier reduces pollution, too.
Ceiling fan benefits
Aside from using fresh air and fans to reduce air pollution, ceiling fans can improve your family’s energy consumption. According to the Zionsville, Indiana-based company Fanimation, a ceiling fan’s ability to circulate air can reduce room temperatures by 10 degrees.
Air conditioners can use up to 100 times more electricity than ceiling fans – so ceiling fans are the more energy-efficient and frugal choice. Fanimation estimates that ceiling fans operate for 1 cent an hour – yet air conditions operate for 43 cents per hour.
To cut back on costs during the hottest days of the year when air conditioning is necessary, simply raise your thermostat and use your ceiling fan – you’ll be able to save energy and money.
Fan challenges
This summer, my husband and I were updating the lighting in our bedroom and kitchen and we went shopping for new ceiling fans. I was surprised by how many options there were – yet it was difficult to find fans that we both agreed on. Our shopping list included the overall style, type of finish, color of wood, and a flush mount. It took us a couple months of heading back and forth to lighting stores to finally find the ideal fans. Now that they’re installed, we’re very pleased with the looks and cooling effects.
What’s next?
Tomorrow I’ll explain more about Fanimation – both the company and their fans.
Talk back
Do you prefer fans or air conditioning? Why? Have you considered using the two together to optimally cool your home?
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I’ve always used both at the same time. Of course, I live in Arkansas, and we’ve had weeks straight of over 100 degree weather. But my ceiling fans are on all year round. In the winter, I reverse them so they blow the hot air OFF the ceiling to circulate back into the room.