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Furnace Fan

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  • Jan 21st, 2020 9:38 am
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Newbie
Jul 19, 2014
50 posts
21 upvotes
Hamilton, Ontario

Furnace Fan

A simple question, should the furnace fun run all the time or just when the furnace is working?
5 replies
Sr. Member
Jun 23, 2019
663 posts
524 upvotes
It's a personal preference. Some people put fan control in "AUTO" which only runs the fan when the furnace is heating. Other people put it to "ON" which runs the fan constantly to keep air moving throughout the house to even out temps in different rooms.
Deal Guru
Jan 25, 2007
12695 posts
7861 upvotes
Paris
Nest has a thing that you can have it run 15, 30, 45 mins out of every hour or all the time. I think Winter I run mine 30 mins and summer all the time (which actually helps filter the air as well).
Deal Expert
User avatar
May 10, 2005
36997 posts
11419 upvotes
Ottawa
I have the fan running all the time.
I find that the temperature in the house is evened out in all rooms. I can lower the temperature a few degrees and still be comfortable.
When not demanding heat or cool, the fan runs at low speed. The air in the house is constantly moving. I do have to change the filter every month.
“Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.”
Deal Addict
User avatar
Dec 6, 2017
1885 posts
1292 upvotes
Manitoba
I run it per demand, like when cooking or when the air is feeling stale. I do wonder how much it would cost per month to run the fan 24/7.
Deal Addict
Nov 24, 2004
4664 posts
1242 upvotes
Toronto
The decision to run the fan only on heat / cool cycles vs. continually really depends on how your house is laid out, how well it is insulated, etc.

Our house is over 100 years old, and not very well insulated. Some rooms tend to get very cold in the winter. To even things out and make it more liveable, we run our fan continually when we are home and awake. We put it in "auto" mode when we are out, and often when we're sleeping.

Our furnace fan seems to use about 600-700 W of power when operating. If the furnace would actually be firing 20% of the time anyway (ballpark), that means the extra energy cost of running the fan 24-7 is about 12 kWh per day (also a ballpark). At an incremental electricity cost of (on average) $0.16 per kWh, that works out to about $1.90 per day extra in electricity. In practice, because we don't actually run the fan 24-7, the cost is less.

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