It will be three years ago this August that we moved into our most recent home, oh good for me, I know, one of the things with our current home is that we have ceiling fans in multiple rooms. I was cleaning dust off the blades recently and decided to switch the fans over to 'summer' mode. If you've got ceiling fans are you taking advantage of the different settings?

According to estimates by the U.S. Department of Energy, correctly using a ceiling fan can save on both cooling and heating costs. "When used in conjunction with air conditioning in summer, you can raise the thermostat 4 degrees with no loss of comfort and recoup up to 30 percent on your energy bills; in winter, you can expect to cut costs by up to 15 percent."

So which way should the blades spin during the summer months? According to The Home Depot, "a ceiling fan should rotate counterclockwise in the summer so that the blades push cooler air down in a column. This is the best ceiling fan direction for air conditioning since it makes the air feel cooler than it is, and allows you to turn your thermostat up a tad."

During the winter months, you should reverse the motor so the blades spin clockwise and according to The Home Depot, "the fan should run at the lowest speed. This pulls cool air up toward the ceiling, which in turn displaces the warm air that rises and collects near the ceiling."

I was amazed when I talked to my parents about switching over the fan to a different mode they asked what I was talking about. It was about 5 minutes after getting off the phone with them that my dad called me back and told me he was going to give the directional blade change a try this summer and see if he sees some energy savings.

Enter your number to get our free mobile app

Goosebumps and other bodily reactions, explained

 

More From KQCL Power 96