There's been chatter in the office about the effect of installing one of these to assist in cooling the house.

Any thoughts?

How do these differ in effectiveness from whole house fans? Why would I use one of those?

They work well if set up properly. You have to have adequate soffit ventilation for the fan to be able to pull the hot air out.

A whole house fan is designed to move the air in the entire house, and can be set up to draft the air up and out. An attic fan removes the hot air from the attic space so less heat is transmitted back down thru the ceiling.

I find if I open the attic opening it can draft the air up and out more quickly than just relying on the soffit vents.

There's been chatter in the office about the effect of installing one of these to assist in cooling the house.

Any thoughts?

How do these differ in effectiveness from whole house fans? Why would I use one of those?


We have both fans in our home, I don't know which is "whole house" and which is considered "attic", but I know they both make a huge difference, particularly when we're not running the AC.

The fan that is installed in the roof is set for a temp and runs automatically. We hear it kick on and off often, whether or not the AC is running. Sucks air out of the attic and shoots it outside.

The one installed in the ceiling in the hallway upstairs near the bedrooms is great for when the air outside is cool but not humid. Open the windows in the bedrooms about 2", turn that fan on and stand back. Sucks air in through the windows and shoots it into the attic. Creates a great breeze! I try not to run it over night, dries my eyes out terrible! This fan is wonderful on cool mornings in the spring and fall.

I would highly recommend installation of both these fans!

My parents were having trouble keeping their upstairs cool, even with two units....SO put in an attic fan for them...worked like a charm! I recommend them to everyone...at least a 10-12 degree difference in the upstairs.

I Agree with my-thyme. We have a whole-house fan and it is great for spring and fall when you don't need AC, but want to pull some cool air in. We don't have an attic fan, but have the vented soffit, end vents, and a ridge vent in the roof. Of course, I don't spend any time up there in the summer, but our electric bill for last month (3 floors in the house with the thermostat around 75) was just under $200.00.

What is a whole house fan?

I have an attic fan and when it's cooler outside than in it works great.

What is a whole house fan?

I have an attic fan and when it's cooler outside than in it works great.

It's a larger fan than an attic fan, usually, and you mount it in the ceiling that is the floor of the attic. When you turn it on, it draws air from the lowest level of the house which is usually much cooler, and pushes warmer air into the attic. That, combined with the attic fan, really get the upper floor levels cooled down.

It's a larger fan than an attic fan, usually, and you mount it in the ceiling that is the floor of the attic. When you turn it on, it draws air from the lowest level of the house which is usually much cooler, and pushes warmer air into the attic. That, combined with the attic fan, really get the upper floor levels cooled down.

That's what I have. Thing almost sucks the cat up.:lol:

That's what I have. Thing almost sucks the cat up.:lol:

Yeah, it can do that! An attic fan, then, would be mounted in the roof to exhaust the attic air to the outside.

Mine died. :ohwell: Needs a new thermostat.

They work well if set up properly. You have to have adequate soffit ventilation for the fan to be able to pull the hot air out.

A whole house fan is designed to move the air in the entire house, and can be set up to draft the air up and out. An attic fan removes the hot air from the attic space so less heat is transmitted back down thru the ceiling.

I find if I open the attic opening it can draft the air up and out more quickly than just relying on the soffit vents.

Wouldn't that suck all the A/C out?

Wouldn't that suck all the A/C out?

Yes! Which is why I only open that up when the a/c isn't on!

Yes! Which is why I only open that up when the a/c isn't on!

:yay: Gotcha

That's what I have. Thing almost sucks the cat up.:lol:

:yeahthat:

:roflmao:

They are great..:yay:

The thing with attic fans are make sure you have great vented soffit to draw in fresh air like GW Guy said. Alot of people feel that more is better, that is not the case with attic ventilation. If you have ridge vent the attic or gable vents will draw the air from the ridge vent and not the soffit and defeat the purpose.

That's what I have. Thing almost sucks the cat up.:lol:

:killingme Yup, that's the good fan!