Does Attic Ventilation Fan Help Cool House

Attic fans and whole house fans together can help with home ventilation but they serve different purposes.

Does attic ventilation fan help cool house.

Attic fans are intended to cool hot attics by drawing in cooler outside air from attic vents soffit and gable and pushing hot air to the outside. Using a fan to blow hot air out of the attic doesn t address the radiant heat flow from the roof to the attic floor. Venting a homes attic is a very important best building practices will say 50 at the ridge and 50 at the soffits unobstructed. 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.

This prevents hot air from seeping into your home and driving up the temperature in the living space which reduces the load on your air conditioner. Yes installing an attic fan raises the electric bill. Most fans cannot keep up. If the attic fan keeps the house cool enough so that the owners leave the ac off there is almost certainly an energy benefit.

If the attic fan increases the comfort level of the house it may be worth it. Cool air in hot air out attic ventilation works on the principle that heated air naturally rises primarily utilizing two types of vents. When combined however they form a perfect union. A whole house fan can be run from early evening to early morning effectively cooling the structure of your home using the cool free outside air.

However if your attic has blocked soffit vents and is not well sealed from the rest of the house attic fans will suck cool conditioned air up out of the house and into the attic. Intake vents located at the lowest part of the roof under. Do not use mechanical means electric attic fans. Vents do provide some passive cooling but not enough to truly reduce your indoor temperatures.

As a certified licensed home inspector it is not correct to say too much ventilation is bad for an attic unless rain moisture is getting in. During the day any cooler air brought in by the fan will be heated up immediately by the surrounding structure. Even though an attic exhaust fan can incrementally lower the temperature of a very hot attic using a fan does not stop the source radiant heat. Much of that heat then conducts downward and finds its way into the house.