Gas and Oil Home Heating Furnaces - Furnace fan "On"

Doityourself.com community forum was created to provide answers to all questions related to home improvement and home repair. Doityourself community can help you find information about how-to topics on small fixes to large remodeling projects. With comprehensive how-to content and expertly moderated community forums DoItYourself.com makes it easy to tackle even the most complex home improvement projects.



PDA

View Full Version : Furnace fan "On"

msmaxx
08-12-07, 01:47 PM
I leave our gas furnace thermostat set with the fan "on" at all times. I feel it ciruclates the air more efficiently. My husband says it cost more to run the fan constantly instead of leaving it in the "Auto" position. Any thoughts on this?

Grady
08-12-07, 03:18 PM
Your husband is correct. It does cost more to run the fan constantly. If it is a conventional blower motor (not variable speed) the cost can be significant.
airman.1994
08-12-07, 07:12 PM
I’m going to disagree. (This is from what I’ve heard in school) The difference will be a few cents a day. The reason is because of the high amp draw at start up. There are other advantages. Like the air being filtered, more constant temp.

Jay11J
08-12-07, 08:00 PM
Depends on what you got for a blower. Running it ON all the time may cost a few $$ more a month, but it will increase the comfort.

If your home is feeling humid in the summer, then I'd advise you not to run it in the summer.

I run mine in AUTO in the summer when I run A/C, and ON in the fall and winter. I have variable speed blower, so it don't cost much to run all the time. Also variable speed blower, the blower runs slower, so the draft isn't noticed.
Grady
08-13-07, 06:59 PM
If the fan draws 5 amps, that's like leaving 6-100 watt light bulbs on 24/7. I don't know about others but I sure don't want to pay for leaving that kind of load on constantly. True variable speed motors, as opposed to multi-speed ones, draw far less current. In any case, by running the fan 24/7 in the cooling season, you are going to re-evaporate some of the moisture your A/C has taken out of the air and are likely to end up more UNcomfortable.