thisplace.com.au - Is Your House Like an Oven?

The availability of air conditioning has dramatically changed home design. In some homes little or no natural ventilation is allowed for to give fresh air cross ventilation or reduce heat build up. To counter this it is often assumed that an active cooling system should be installed in order to make the home livable in summer. A Breeze Power Whole House Fan provides an energy efficient alternative to refrigerated air conditioning without the humidity of evaporative cooling systems. It works by drawing rapid streams of fresh outside air into and out of rooms and the roof space.

Including a Whole House Fan in a home design creates a more efficient home with cooling in every room rather than a home design that relies purely on refrigerated air conditioning through all or part of the home.

Whole House Fan cooling ideally suits today's open plan home designs which are difficult to air condition economically as areas cannot be closed off. This system also makes the most of thermal insulation, allowing slow heat penetration from outside without trapping heat inside the home.

The big difference in cooling obtained by using a Breeze Power Fan as opposed to wind turbines or ceiling sweep fans is the speed of air flow created not only in the roof space but in the rooms. A single Whole House Fan of appropriate size is installed inside the roof space. It is mounted on the ceiling joists over a walk through area of the home such as a hallway, at the top of the staircase or where open plan areas meet.

When switched on the fan creates a powerful updraught. Indoor air is drawn from room towards the fan. It passes through the shutter and fan blades into the roof space. Fresh outside air flows into rooms through partially open windows replacing the outgoing air. The air flow provides personal wind chill cooling as it flows over people in the rooms.

Source: Master Builders September/October 2000 Magazine