When the weather is cooling off, you are probably concerned about how you’ll prepare your heating and cooling. After all, HVAC expenses can add up to a significant portion of your monthly electric bill. To try and find ways to reduce costs, some owners look closely at their thermostat. Could there be a setting they should use to improve efficiency?
The bulk of thermostats have a ‘Fan’ or ‘Fan On’ setting. But if the fan is on during a regular cycle, what will the fan setting offer for the HVAC system? This guide should help. We’ll walk through what exactly the fan setting is and how you can use it to save money in the summer or winter.
What Is the Fan Setting on My Thermostat?
For the bulk of thermostats, the fan setting means that the HVAC blower fan stays on. A few furnaces can run at a low level with this setting, but in general heating or cooling isn’t being generated. The ‘Auto’ setting, conversely, will turn on the fan through a heating or cooling cycle and turn it off once the cycle is finished.
There are benefits and drawbacks to using the fan setting on your thermostat, and the ideal option can depend on your personal comfort requirements.
Advantages to utilizing the Fan/On setting:
- You can keep the temperature in every room more consistent by enabling the fan to keep running.
- Indoor air quality will be highest because continuous airflow will keep moving airborne contaminants into the air filter.
- A smaller amount of start-stop cycles for the HVAC fan helps lengthen its life span. Because the air handler is usually connected to the furnace, this means you might avoid needing furnace repair.
Disadvantages to switching to the Fan/On setting:
- A constant fan could add to your energy costs by a small margin.
- Continuous airflow may clog your air filter soon, increasing the frequency you will want to replace it.
Should My Thermostat Be on Fan or Auto in Summer/Winter
Through the summer, warm air can persist in unfinished spaces such as the attic or an attached garage. If you leave the fan on, your HVAC system may gradually move this warm air into the rest of your home, compelling the HVAC system to work more to preserve the desired temperature. In serious heat, this may result in needing AC repair more often as wear and tear gets worse.
The opposite can happen during the winter. Cooler spaces such as a basement will hold onto cooler air, which may eventually flow into the rest of your home. Keeping the fan on will sometimes pump more cold air upward, increasing the amount of heating you need to keep warm.
If you’re still trying to decide if you should use the fan/on setting, don’t forget that every home and family’s comfort needs are different. Leaving the HVAC system’s fan on could work for you if:
Someone in your household deals with allergies. Allergies and other respiratory conditions can be stressful on the family. Leaving the fan on is more likely to enhance indoor air quality, helping your family breathe easier.
Your home deals with hot and cold spots. Many homes deal with persistent hot and cold spots that quickly return to a temperature different from the rest of the house. The fan setting should help minimize these changes by constantly refreshing each room’s airflow.
