Ceiling fans: A new spin on cooling your home

We’re above the ho-hum spin of the typical, builder-grade utilitarian ceiling fan, and it’s time to switch to the modern beauty and flair of an art piece that can keep you cool.

“Proper air movement enables your thermostat to work more efficiently, any time of the year,” said Melissa Fanelli, showroom manager of Ferguson Bath, Kitchen &Lighting Gallery on Grand Canyon Drive.

“A fan saves the air conditioner and heater from working so hard and can help reduce the cost of the energy bill.”

The biggest fans of ceiling fans will tell you there are a few major things you need to know: size, power and style. And the importance of each is up to you.

In an April survey of homeowners by Lamps Plus, 36 percent said design was the most important consideration when buying a ceiling fan; 31 percent said energy efficiency was most important.

“Fans have changed so much in the last 10 to 15 years,” said Eric Peterson of Northern Lights and Fans said. “We have fans with a 99-inch blade span, sports-themed fans, fans with crystal and fans with two or three motors.”

Size matters

What a fan can do depends largely on the size of the blades and the power of the motor.

And as time goes on, fans are getting larger and more efficient. Normal fan size has grown to 58-72 inches.

“As home sizes increase and great rooms expand in scale, homeowners have been incorporating larger and more dramatic fans into their spaces,” said David Gray, Lamps Plus sales manager, professionals division. “While 52-inch fans are still the most popular, new fans stretch their spans to 60-, 72- or even 84-inches.”

Stirring it up

A high-quality motor will not only move the air with power and efficiency, but as quietly as possible.

“Let’s face it … a $49.99 price tag can be quite attractive! But these fans tend to move very little air,” Gray said. “They have tiny motors that have to work harder and spin faster just to create a little bit of air circulation.”

The cubic feet per minute rating of a fan measures how much air it’s pushing around. The consensus is a good fan will offer at least 4,000 CFM.

Fanco offers an IQ motor in its fans, many of which can be customized by blade and motor type to fit your style and budget.

“The three key features include increased power, quieter operation and greatly reduced energy consumption,” said Jim Kloos, showroom manager of Fanco.

The three Fanco locations in Las Vegas offer a display of different ceiling fan motors hooked to fans and monitored by meters to show power consumption while allowing customers to experience output.

Lamps Plus boasts about its Ozone fan.

“This exclusive invention is the sleekest and quietest possible fan design, incorporating a flat LED light kit with a first-of-its-kind recessed motor,” Gray said. “Installation of this fan is more complex than standard ceiling fans, but the end result is an extremely efficient and nearly silent fan.”

Shedding light

A ceiling fan with a light fixture attached is a great benefit, but everyone agrees — don’t buy a fan if what you want is a light. Or, better yet, buy both.

Get the ceiling fan with the overhead light, but also get a lamp. The extra overhead light is a great option, but it should be just that — an option for light, not the only source.

“Ceiling fans aren’t meant to be the main source of light in any room,” Gray said. “Overhead light is great for cleaning or working, but not as good for socializing or relaxing.

And make sure it’s easy enough to control the light and the fan. If you want the light off and the fan on, it shouldn’t be too complicated. The right controls can affect the accessibility of the fan. If you can’t easily turn it on and adjust it, it won’t get used.

“Wall controls are necessary if your fan is mounted on a high ceiling where a pull chain won’t be attractive, but aren’t very handy for bedside control,” Gray advised.

Consider a remote control for bedroom fans, but keep them away from kids.

Fans of art

In addition to size and function, the style is fanning out into contemporary art.

“The popularity of both industrial and contemporary design themes has motivated fan companies to burst forward with exciting new shapes and finishes,” Gray said.

Consider your style before you step into a showroom to see what would complement it well.

Fanelli said some of their bestsellers are the Minka Slipstream, Xtreme, Aviation, Fanimation Odyn, Kichler Ferron and Terna.

“All of these fans are complete with blades, light kit and remote controls,” she said. “Most of these fans are DC-motored fans and, if they include a light, it is an LED bulb. All of these put out a lot of CFMs and all have a unique design style. These fans are more of an art piece for the ceiling, with a purpose.”

One last spin

n Admire from afar. Only 8 percent of homeowners in the Lamps Plus survey said they clean their ceiling fans weekly and 10 percent said they never clean them.

n Don’t chuck your old fan. Fanelli suggests donating it to Habitat for Humanity.

n Mount it where you please. Plan to mount a ceiling fan with the blades at least 7 feet off the floor on an 8-foot ceiling, and raise that blade height 6 inches for every 12 inches your ceiling is higher than 8 feet. If you personally want the fan at a different height than these recommendations, it’s fine to adjust the height to your desire.

“For those of us who have lived in Vegas for one summer or 25, like myself, a ceiling fan is a necessity in almost every room of the house,” Peterson said.