Solar powered attic vent fans usually don t move as many cubic feet of air per minute cfm as hardwired fans.
Solar powered attic fans do they work.
Most ceilings are leaky.
My attic space gets as hot as blue blazes.
Ad the infrared rays from the sun are powerful.
The beneficial effects of solar powered attic fans if any are limited to a subset of houses those with airtight ceilings.
Whether or not an attic fan really works is a controversial subject.
There may never be an roi.
Depending on what your utility charges that s about 40 per year.
Many are solar powered and require no other wiring so they don t cause any additional charges on your electricity bill at all.
Here is some information so you can decide whether an attic fan is right for your home.
Powered attic ventilators cause more problems than they solve so if solar powered models have gone up in power that makes them less desirable than ever not more desirable.
You will probably need two solar attic fans to get the results you want.
Fans don t move lots of air.
But they re much easier to install since no wiring is needed.
That means you will need to double up your investment in this area.
Manufacturers of attic fans as well as hvac companies will tell you otherwise.
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.
But after seeing my solar powered attic fan work i have a long list of cons solar powered attic fan checklist.
I saw an advertisement for a solar powered attic fan and that seems like a great.
In general it s widely believed that an unpowered attic ventilation system will result in a cooler home.
Ft of attic space for example 20 x 50 to be effective.
But there s really a more fundamental reason that power attic ventilators won t help a lot and for some reason i didn t mention that in the original article.
And it s part of the reason that my state georgia has banned power attic ventilators unless they re solar powered which was a concession needed to get the grid powered fans banned.
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.
Do attic ventilators effect the home s temperature.
The solar attic fans all moved less than 1 000 cubic feet of air per minute cfm and they did nothing to lower the temperature inside my own attic.
Energy professionals will tell you that they do more harm than good.
Fans slow down or stop when most needed.
Even if you install it yourself and take the tax credit it could still take you 15 years or.