The cost of air conditioning a typical home in Southwest Florida accounts for about 30 percent of the annual electric budget. This makes the cost and need for summer comfort one of our greatest energy concerns. Used properly, fans can enhance comfort and reduce air conditioning costs. Poorly managed fans, however, can inflate your electric bill.
Fans move air.
Some fans, like ceiling fans or oscillating fans, simply circulate the air within a room. As the air moves across moist human skin, the wind-chill effect occurs and helps the body shed heat through evaporative cooling. The wind-chill effect only affects people, not dry surfaced, inanimate objects in your home. Fans left running in empty rooms simply consume power without producing real benefits. The moral of the story is to use fans in occupied rooms but turn them off when the room is unoccupied.