Air circulation in the house is crucial for the keeping an odor free environment and moving out any pollutants that can accumulate in the house from stagnant air. Whilst Air conditioning units can mechanically drive this airflow, the energy used to run these systems is by far the greatest of any device in the average household (See below).

10 – 100 Watts:           Ceiling Fan (no Lights)
600-1500 Watts:       Electric Space Heaters
600-3000 Watts:      Room Air Conditioners
2000-5000 Watts:    Central Air Conditioning Units

The instalation and use of a ceiling fan can greatly reduce the reliance on the AC system by circulating the air within the house, hereby creating a wind chill effect effectively cooling the people in the room whilst not actually cooling the room.

Operating the fan in reverse in the Winter produces a gentle updraft which circulates the warm air that has risen to the top of the room downward and thus stabilizes the air column, this in turn should allow for you to adjust your thermostat settings to a lower temperature. Much like lighting a room that is unoccupied, it doesn’t make much sense to have a fan on in a room with nobody in it.