Do I Need A Solar Attic Fan

In addition to soffit gable and or ridge vents you may want to add a power vent fan to your attic to increase air circulation.

Do i need a solar attic fan.

Solar powered attic vent fans usually don t move as many cubic feet of air per minute cfm as hardwired fans. You will probably need two solar attic fans to get the results you want. Intense sunlight can create heat faster than one or two small fans can cool an area. But they re much easier to install since no wiring is needed.

Ideally there should also be plenty of soffit intake space their calculations recommend 336 net square inches of open soffit ventilation to supply 700 cfm. Attic fans can create a negative pressure condition in your home causing vented appliances to backdraft. This will make determining the quantity type and placement of solar fans much easier and more effective. If a cloud blocks the sunlight the fans slow or stop.

According to the home ventilating institute hvi powered attic ventilators need to move a minimum of 700 cubic feet per minute cfm for 1 000 sq. Ft of attic space for example 20 x 50 to be effective. You need that amount of air if not more to get any sort of cooling benefit from the fans. To determine the number of cubic feet per minute needed for a power vent fan multiply the number of square feet in your attic by 0 7.

Vaulted ceilings obstructions and the amount of existing ventilation from soffit vents ridge vents and gable vents should all be considered. This backdraft can bring dangerous and toxic fumes into your home like carbon monoxide an odorless and deadly gas. You need the fans to be operating at. All you need to know about attic ventilation.

Because what happens is attic fans are so strong that they actually reach down into the conditioned space of your house and they do that by using the wall cavities and where the outlets and pipes come through the walls as places where they draw air from the inside of your house it s that air conditioned air and it ll pull it right up into the attic and exhaust it outside. This fan moves 1 000 or more cubic feet of air per minute creating low pressure in your attic. As the sun gets lower in the sky when attic temperatures are at their greatest the fans slow down. Many are solar powered and require no other wiring so they don t cause any additional charges on your electricity bill at all.

Powered exhaust vents feature an electric or solar powered fan to create an effect similar to that of a turbine view example on amazon. Because solar attic fans operate with a lower power output they are unable to move as much air as some of the other options that are available. The amount of solar attic fans a home needs will ultimately depend on many factors. Ok i would definitely not recommend an attic fan.

If your attic space is over 1 800 square feet you will need enough solar fans to move 8 000 cfm. To reduce that expense some homeowners buy an electric or solar attic ventilator.