Solar Attic Fans

[bakon]

Scam or needed? Finding articles leaning both ways and need help deciding if this is waste of money and possibly harmful or is it a great idea and everyone should have them. Thanks for any help,

[dewilson58]

There are a few "independent" assessments.

Here is one.

Are Solar Attic Fans Worth It? - Waypoint Inspection Property Inspection (https://waypointinspection.com/solar-attic-fans/)

"maybe a five year payback"

:popcorn::popcorn:

[bakon]

I saw that one. Not so worried about cost as much as are they really doing anything helpful too.

[dewilson58]

I saw that one. Not so worried about cost as much as are they really doing anything helpful too.

If that is where the bar is set, "doing anything helpful", the answer is yes.

That's an extremely low bar...........no one says they do nothing.

Buy one. :shrug:

[bakon]

If that is where the bar is set, "doing anything helpful", the answer is yes.

That's an extremely low bar...........no one says they do nothing.

Buy one. :shrug:

Some say they pull air from inside house, but with such low CFM, and all the soffit vents that’s not a concern. But pulling from the ridge vent in, well that would be counterproductive, possibly harmful. Cost at about $2k for two large ones from Solar Guys installed, I misspoke if I say cost for reverse airflow would not be a problem.

[retiredguy123]

In my opinion, they are not worth buying. Even if you use the cost saving figures in the cited article, the payback period would be 15 years, based on a $2,000 cost versus $750 used on the article. But, I also doubt that you will save as much electricity as they claim.

[JohnN]

Here's the alternative that I used. I had Solar Guys install an electric (not solar) garage fan at a cost (10 years ago) of approximately $100. It is installed to pull air through garage door vents, into the garage, and out through the fan pulling the air into the attic.

It keeps the garage quite cooler, shaded air temperature, which is fine for us.
I'd say it also keeps my whole house cooler since the attic gets ventilated too.
Electrical cost is negligible and I think I save on A/C costs since my utility bills seems pretty reasonable.

Energy-Saving Solar Garage Fan Install | The Villages & Central FL (https://thesolarguys.com/ventilation/garage-fans/)

[photo1902]

Here's the alternative that I used. I had Solar Guys install an electric (not solar) garage fan at a cost (10 years ago) of approximately $100. It is installed to pull air through garage door vents, into the garage, and out through the fan pulling the air into the attic.

It keeps the garage quite cooler, shaded air temperature, which is fine for us.
I'd say it also keeps my whole house cooler since the attic gets ventilated too.
Electrical cost is negligible and I think I save on A/C costs since my utility bills seems pretty reasonable.

Does it have a fire damper?

[Toymeister]

Not needed, no payoff period.

Let's look at actual facts for attic fans.
I had a 120 volt, thermostatically controlled fan and the means to track what time of the day it came on and which days. The fan came on late morning, typically 10:30 to 11:00. More telling is the shut off. From 10:30 PM to 2:00 AM.

Next, consider solar panels on the fan are not binary. They generate power based upon the position of the sun, the energy generated determines the efficiency (speed) of the fan.

So, this means as you need a fan to expell the heat from your attic, which is heated by the hot roof long after solar noon your fan's speed is slowing and finally shutting down.

Finally, consider where the heat from your home comes from. It is a box with six sides, only one is impacted by a cool attic. Actually this has been measured. An UNINSULATED ceiling is responsible for 25 - 30% of your heat load. That is one reason your attic is the best insulated of all six sides of the box you call home.

For illustration let's say that your ceiling is not insulated and let's use a overly optimistic assumption that the solar fan will reduce your attic temp by 10% lower than it is already, that every month is August and your electric bill is 100% for electricity (no tax, absolutely no fees).
We can make this even more ridiculous and say that every bill is 250.00, that you need two solar fans to pull off this feat (@900.00 ea). All of this with the realization that about 55% of your bill is HVAC looks like this:

$250 (bill) x .55 (% of HVAC) x .3 (heat gained from ceiling) x .1 (savings from lower attic temp = 4.13 savings per month.

$1,800 (cost of fans) / $4.125 (monthly fan savings) = 436 months pay back. That's 36 years, four months after you remove all your insulation and devise a day for the sun to shine longer.

Any questions?

[DAVES]

Any fan the function is to move air. In a closed system, such as your attic, at best a partly closed system it is like sucking air out of a coke bottle. It is impossible unless air gets in. In you attic, you use the fact that hot air rises, reason you have vents on the bottom taking in cooler outside air and vests on the top venting the hottest air.

All of these sales pitches use numbers to SELL a product that are if all is ideal. Things in the real world are never ideal. Installing fans in your attic creates a slight negative pressure. You should add extra intakes more risk of animal entry or the fans will suck
air you paid to cool into your hot attic.

Will; it truly pay off?

I believe your electric company will GIVE you an energy audit. What to do to save money and estimate of what you will save is likely a good place to start.

[frose]

they pull the hot air out of the attic.. the only issue with solar is I can't hear if it's working. I have one and have no idea if it's working or not..

[Toymeister]

Some say they pull air from inside house, but with such low CFM, and all the soffit vents that’s not a concern. But pulling from the ridge vent in, well that would be counterproductive, possibly harmful. Cost at about $2k for two large ones from Solar Guys installed, I misspoke if I say cost for reverse airflow would not be a problem.

In theory the fans (solar or 120v) pull air in from all sources (ridge, Soffit, and a/c cooled home via leaks) equally, this theory doesn't consider friction. In other words the fans pull air predominantly from the closest source as that air moves easily to the fan.

I've already illustrated that there is no HVAC savings to justify solar fans there are two other aspects that are worthy of discussion. Will your attic be cooler and will your roof last longer?

More ventilation would lower attic temp and this extend shingle life but only if there is enough of it. I can go though the math of it but frankly it's more effort than I'm willing to spend here. Suffice to say two fans aren't enough to make a measurable difference.

But additional static vents could make a difference as they are so inexpensive that you can put six to ten more on a designer home with ridge vents and effectively double your roof peak ventilation.

That's exactly what I did.

[EdFNJ]

they pull the hot air out of the attic.. the only issue with solar is I can't hear if it's working. I have one and have no idea if it's working or not.. EXACTLY what I was about to write. I sent my drone up to see if I could tell, nope. Stuck my head in the attic, nope, couldn't tell because my entry is in the garage nowhere near the fan. Finally, I went up on the roof and found it was spinning. No idea if it's doing any good or if I wasted $500 (or whatever it was ~6yrs ago). Didn't get it to SAVE MONEY just hoping it would make the A/C work more efficiently with an (allegedly) cooler attic. Probably could have done without it. Up north we had one that could suck you out of the house through the attic entry when the steps were down. :D Sounded like a P-51 when it was running but it definitely dropped the attic temp noticeably. It was 110AC obviously not solar.

[MartinSE]

We also have garage exhaust fans put in by Solar Guys. It obviously won't get the garage below ambient outdoor temps, but it helps and helps the attic.

One thing I have found is that the fan they put in creates a serious pressure drop in the garage (the vents are not large enough) and so, when we open the door from the house to the garage the door is sucked closed. If you stand there with the door open, the cool air in the house is sucked out. So, at the moment I open the garage doors about 3 inches which mostly moves that problem. I am considering putting more vents into the garage doors to reduce the pressure drop in the garage.

[JohnN]

We also have garage exhaust fans put in by Solar Guys. It obviously won't get the garage below ambient outdoor temps, but it helps and helps the attic.

One thing I have found is that the fan they put in creates a serious pressure drop in the garage (the vents are not large enough) and so, when we open the door from the house to the garage the door is sucked closed. If you stand there with the door open, the cool air in the house is sucked out. So, at the moment I open the garage doors about 3 inches which mostly moves that problem. I am considering putting more vents into the garage doors to reduce the pressure drop in the garage.

That's interesting about the pressure. Added vents should solve the issue. I've not had that problem but I have a fairly small 1-1/2 car garage. I think I read that you should have 1 square foot of fan / venting for each 100 square feet of garage and I've got a tad over that, maybe why I've not seen the pressure.

[Kenswing]

We have a solar attic fan installed right above our Majic Stairs. We didn’t buy it for any type of savings. We got it to moderate the temperature in the storage area of our attic. Easy to see if it’s running. We have four passive vents at the other end of the house. During the day I open the garage door. Lower the garage screen and lower the stairs a bit. It creates good flow. I only do this during the day while we’re home.

[jrref]

Everyone is an expert lol

So here are the facts:
1) Don't buy any attic fan to save money. The rate of return will be very large.
2) Attic fans should pull fresh outside air through the soffit vents and possible through the ridge vents although this should be small and out through the fan. If your soffit vents are blocked then you need to get them unblocked or the attic will not ventilate properly no matter what venting you have. When the Solar Guys install the fan they will tell you if there is a problem.
3) The Solar Guys install the solar fan towards the afternoon sun so the fan is working full speed when you really need it.
4) The Solar Guys sell two fans. One lower speed covering a small attic and a higher speed to cover a large attic. Depending on your attic if it were really large i would install the high speed fan near the front side of the house to exhaust the space over the garage and the smaller one towards the back. Most homes will only need the one higher speed fan. I would not install two of the higher speed fans unless you have a large Premier home. The Solar Guys web site has the specification for each fan so you can verify what they recommend selling you.
5) Do install a solar attic fan if you want to lower the temperature in your attic so what you store over the garage doesn't melt and any lower attic temperature will mean less load on the A/C even if it's small. Your roof will also last somewhat longer.

I have two solar attic ventillators installed by the Solar Guys, one large and one small in my 2600 ft Ivy and after installation my attic never gets more than 10 degrees hotter than the outside air. No more 150 degree superheated attic. Also look at the physics. With no attic fan the hot air moves in through the soffit vents and out the ridge or other non-active vents slowly due to the hot air rising. Although the hot air moves out of the attic it can superheat during the hottest part of the day. Any attic ventilator will force the air throught the soffit vents and out the attic fan preventing this superheating effect. This all assumes that your soffit vents are mostly clear. If they are not then your attic will not vent properly no matter what system passive or active you have.

The homes here in the Villages have the minimum attic venting to meet code. This is not enough. In general people believe an attic ventilator will cool down an attic to a comfortable 72 degrees and all the studies show that this is not the case. Any attic ventilator can only draw in fresh air from the outside. So if the outside air is 95 degrees then with perfect attic ventilation the attic wil be 95 degrees. What the studies do point out is an attic ventilator will if properly installed and with adequate soffit venting, reduce the peak temperature of the attic and prevent it from superheating from the sun beating on the roof, etc.. But because you have insulation in the attic the net effect of lowering the temperature in your home will be small. So with an attic ventilator you will get some A/C savings, extend the life of your roof and enable you to store items over your garage without having them melt.

Also if you get a solar attic ventilator from the Solar Guys for example, for 2022 you will get a Federal Tax credit, not a deduction, of 26% of the whole cost, fan and labor thus reducing the cost of the fan.

[EdFNJ]

Everyone is an expert lol Hmmm, yep, seems so. :;) People who post their thoughts & opinions on a forum generally don't claim to be an expert or even play one on TV. :)
Also if you get a solar attic ventilator from the Solar Guys for example, for 2022 you will get a Federal Tax credit, not a deduction, of 26% of the whole cost, fan and labor thus reducing the cost of the fan. Assuming you are lucky enough to have taxes to credit otherwise you don't . :D

[rrtjp]

There are a few "independent" assessments.

Here is one.

Are Solar Attic Fans Worth It? - Waypoint Inspection Property Inspection (https://waypointinspection.com/solar-attic-fans/)

"maybe a five year payback"

:popcorn::popcorn:
Thanks for that info👍🏼

[jrref]

There are a few "independent" assessments.

Here is one.

Are Solar Attic Fans Worth It? - Waypoint Inspection Property Inspection (https://waypointinspection.com/solar-attic-fans/)

"maybe a five year payback"

:popcorn::popcorn:
Good article but let's take this independent information and apply it to the Villages.

1) Attic Fans Can Pull Air From Inside the Home: True but most of the homes in the Villages have blown in attic insulation which does a very good job of preventing airflow from tiny cracks and holes that allow your cool air to be released into the attic. All the recent homes in the Villages get tested for air flow and you can see the test results on the A/C Air Handler. Also note that the reverse is true. If your home has all these tiny crack and holes even without an attic fan hot air will infultrate your home from the outside as well. At a slower rate but there will still be air flow.
2) Solar Attic Fans Are Just Another Leak Waiting to Happen: True, any roof penetration has a potential to leak. I know the Solar Guys do a very good job using silicon and other flashing methods to reduce this risk basically to near zero. Also here in the Villages we have to change our roofs on an average of 15 years so if the fan is installed properly it should last at least that long. Have you ever looked at your roof and noticed how many round passive vents are on your roof? I guess they can't leak.
3) Older Homes Have Blocked Soffits: This is one of the most important things to be aware of. Fortunately homes built here in the Villages should not have blocked soffits. If they were blocked your attic would super heat and you would know it.
4) So What Are the True Savings of Solar Attic Fans?: As mentioned, you don't buy a Solar Attic fan to save money. Solar is better than electric becasue you don't have to pay to run electric to the fan on install and there is no extra electric cost to run the fan. You buy an attic fan to reduce the temperature in the attic so it doesn't super heat. If you disregard the slightly extended roof life and savings in A/C costs, lowering the temperature in the attic will enable you to store more items over the garage and since your garage ceiling is not typically insulated your garage will be a little cooler as well. Remember you garage is incredibly hot because of the heat gain from the sun beating on the door and from the super heated attic. Since i installed my attic fans my attic never goes more than 10 degrees over the outside air and my garage is also a few degrees cooler, enough that i can tell the difference.

So the point of my response is yes these independent reviews are good but you have to take the data and apply it to your specific home in your specific area where you live and decide if installing a solar attic fan works for you.

Hope this helps.

[jimkerr]

Having an attic fan makes a HUGE difference! I could never go in the attic during the summer. Now it’s not so bad with the fan pulling that hot air out.

If you decide to go with it, go with Solarguys.

[jrref]

Having an attic fan makes a HUGE difference! I could never go in the attic during the summer. Now it’s not so bad with the fan pulling that hot air out.

If you decide to go with it, go with Solarguys.

Agreed!

[Aqtlow]

Thank you for all your in-site and experience, I have been trying to figure out how I want to help two heated areas, the garage and the attic. Being familiar with the fact that a lower temperature in the attic will definitely help the roof shingles last longer, and I want to lower the garage temperature with convection basically through the vents in the ceiling tossing up do I just need to vent in the roof pull the air through the faucet Vansant hopefully pour some air through the garage also two fans one in the garage one in the attic thermostatically controlled just kept going round and round haven’t really done anything yet. I have no round air vents in my roof, only ridge vents, so i’m liking the idea of putting a couple of those round vents in the roof to allow more air to flow out but if I put a vent in the garage or say keep my attic stairs ajar possibly allowing the air at the top of the garage to be convected up into the attic and then out the vents no electricity no thermostatic time we’re no plus energy just the work of nature and I do understand the path of least resistance also but I do believe that the air coming from ground level up to the top of the attic should give some nice natural convection thank you so much for your help if I am off with this theory please let me know if I’m on the right track please let me know thank you

[Judy Vons]

Everyone is talking about installing a solar fan to save money. We installed one to cool the attic space which has a large storage area with pull-down stairs. And, it DOES the job! We can now store items in the above-garage storage area without the concern that these items will be harmed by the excessive heat.

[Aqtlow]

Thank you for all your in-site and experience, I have been trying to figure out how I want to help two heated areas, the garage and the attic. Being familiar with the fact that a lower temperature in the attic will definitely help the roof shingles last longer, and I want to lower the garage temperature with convection basically through vents in the ceiling, do I just need a vent in the roof to pull the air through the garage ceiling vent, also though of two fans one in the garage one in the attic thermostatically controlled I just kept going round and round haven’t really done anything yet. I have no round air vents in my roof, only ridge vents, so i’m liking the idea of putting a couple of those round vents in the roof to allow more air out and I put a vent in the garage door and ceiling I am liking the idea. no electricity no thermostatic time we’re I use no plus energy just the work of nature. if I am off with this theory please let me know if I’m on the right track please let me know thank you

[jrref]

Thank you for all your in-site and experience, I have been trying to figure out how I want to help two heated areas, the garage and the attic. Being familiar with the fact that a lower temperature in the attic will definitely help the roof shingles last longer, and I want to lower the garage temperature with convection basically through vents in the ceiling, do I just need a vent in the roof to pull the air through the garage ceiling vent, also though of two fans one in the garage one in the attic thermostatically controlled I just kept going round and round haven’t really done anything yet. I have no round air vents in my roof, only ridge vents, so i’m liking the idea of putting a couple of those round vents in the roof to allow more air out and I put a vent in the garage door and ceiling I am liking the idea. no electricity no thermostatic time we’re I use no plus energy just the work of nature. if I am off with this theory please let me know if I’m on the right track please let me know thank you

My recommendation would be to install a solar attic fan towards the front side of your home and see if the temperature in the garage comes down. It should because the garage ceiling won't be super heated adding to the heat in the garage

If you put vents in the garage ceiling you will need vents in the garage door to provide intake air. The problem with this is you will be pulling in hot air from the outside and it probably won't feel cooler. If you don't put in any intake air vents in the garage the attic fan won't pull much air from the garage.

As an experiment, get an attic fan installed then prop open you attic access door and see if the garage is any cooler. If so then a vent in the ceiling will help. Either way the garage will be somewhat cooler if you install an attic fan.

[bakon]

So I rode around with wife yesterday checking friends garages and attics. I measured the temps with a Harbor Freight laser gun. I have used same gun on engines and windows, it works pretty fast and finds variations inches apart on materials.

The results are open to interpretation….different size houses, different colors, different facing, one had two small Solar guys attic fans plus a garage fan venting into attic running. One had only one large Solar guy fan. Some had no extra vents. All were in Monarch Grove so about 2 1/2 to 3 years old. All were designer series with 2, 2 1/2, 3 and a 4 car garage.

Readings were around noon before the clouds rolled in. And the houses measured exactly the same, some plus or minus 2-3 degrees. None measured same temp in garage and attic. Meaning the roof was still heating the area above garage ceiling over the outside temp- vents, fans or steps left open if didn’t matter.
ALL WERE THE SAME
We can assume the soffits were in similar condition being built same time.

Garage walls and objects in garage. 88
Wood roof not near running fans 137
Wood support trusses a few feet down from roof 118
Plastic bins on attic floor 105

It didn’t matter what vents, what house, which way It faced or if stuffed full attic or empty space. The differences were less than 3 degrees.

I was hoping to see a 5-10 degree difference. Especially one house which runs two fans and a garage ceiling fan blowing in. Air has to be moving more in those over mine with nothing yet (by the way Solar guys said at minimum I need one large and one small, Have appointment next Monday and said give me two large to move more air) Not sure I am going to continue with appointment.

[ML Smith]

It isn’t a scam but it is also not a must have item. I had Solar Guys install 2 for my house. Wasn’t concerned about ROI. They help keep the house cooler by pulling out some of the hot air. Also had insulation blown in above the lanai and the garage. With that said the garage is some what cooler. Significantly? Probably too strong a word but it does help. When the weather isn’t 90+ degrees, I can definitely notice a difference. (At least a small one anyway.)

[jrref]

So I rode around with wife yesterday checking friends garages and attics. I measured the temps with a Harbor Freight laser gun. I have used same gun on engines and windows, it works pretty fast and finds variations inches apart on materials.

The results are open to interpretation….different size houses, different colors, different facing, one had two small Solar guys attic fans plus a garage fan venting into attic running. One had only one large Solar guy fan. Some had no extra vents. All were in Monarch Grove so about 2 1/2 to 3 years old. All were designer series with 2, 2 1/2, 3 and a 4 car garage.

Readings were around noon before the clouds rolled in. And the houses measured exactly the same, some plus or minus 2-3 degrees. None measured same temp in garage and attic. Meaning the roof was still heating the area above garage ceiling over the outside temp- vents, fans or steps left open if didn’t matter.
ALL WERE THE SAME
We can assume the soffits were in similar condition being built same time.

Garage walls and objects in garage. 88
Wood roof not near running fans 137
Wood support trusses a few feet down from roof 118
Plastic bins on attic floor 105

It didn’t matter what vents, what house, which way It faced or if stuffed full attic or empty space. The differences were less than 3 degrees.

I was hoping to see a 5-10 degree difference. Especially one house which runs two fans and a garage ceiling fan blowing in. Air has to be moving more in those over mine with nothing yet (by the way Solar guys said at minimum I need one large and one small, Have appointment next Monday and said give me two large to move more air) Not sure I am going to continue with appointment. Love to come measure the last poster’s attic compared to mine today as I am walking distance away. Have to give a call.

So you need to be taking the Air temperature and not the temperature of the structures. The sign that the fans are working is your 105 degree reading of the bins on the floor of the attic. If they are at 105 degrees that means the air in the attic space where you measured is about 10 degrees higher than the outside air which is what you want. The structure temperature will not vary much because there isn't enough air flow with a significant temperature difference to cool it down.

But you are correct depending on the size of your home and it's position to the sun all day long will effect how hot your attic gets.

[bakon]

I agree. It was not air temp. But disappointed the structure and items were the same temp whether fans or not. The items have heat soaked from the air though and are what really is “felt” in attic. The higher the item or structure, the warmer it was and the fans couldn’t move enough air to clear it out or bring it to outside temp. The roofs just soak too much. I did go talk to John who is installing these. We agree to check later in day and see if any comparisons could be made.

[dyoder66@aol.com]

I have had solar attic fans for over 15 years. Are still working with no care after installation. Cooled my storage area tremendously. Very happy with cost and also results

[jrref]

I agree. It was not air temp. But disappointed the structure and items were the same temp whether fans or not. The items have heat soaked from the air though and are what really is “felt” in attic. The higher the item or structure, the warmer it was and the fans couldn’t move enough air to clear it out or bring it to outside temp. The roofs just soak too much. I did go talk to John who is installing these. We agree to check later in day and see if any comparisons could be made.

John did mine, he's excellent. I really feel with the two fans you should get a noticable drop in temperature. I know after my fans were installed the attic air temperature never goes above roughly 10 degrees over the outside air temperature. For very large attics two of the 35 watt fans should be more than enough air flow. Just check to see if you can see light from some of the soffit vents in the attic. The vents over the garage should be easy to see. Most of them should be open.

Another way to look at it is at the peak of the day if you touch your roof you will burn your hands. The attich should be super heating. Pulling outside air into the attic and pushing out the super heated air has to make a difference.

[72eagleman]

Many of the insulation installers in this area do not use baffles in the soffit area to allow air to come into the attic. Think of your attic as the emphysema man...he can not get air out of his lungs if he can not get air into his lungs. There are a couple of solutions I know of. Install baffles which is not a fun job after the insulation is already in place. Another alternative exists if your home has gable ends. You can install a solar gable vent fan on one end bringing air into the attic and another solar gable vent fan blowing out. The two fans working together will usually create enough air flow to provide the proper exchange of air. The last option is too plug off about eight feet of the ridge vents in the immediate area of the fan. When a fan is installed to close to a ridge vent or static vent, the fan takes the path of least resistance and brings the air supply in from the ridge vent instead of the soffit vents. Then the fan will short circuit and suck in the air that has just been exhausted from the fan. This creates a circular air supply so all you are doing using the hot air you just exhausted to try and cool. Meanwhile the hot air will stack up to as high as 150F. To prevent this from occurring, a fan should never be installed less than five feet from a ridge vent unless it is physically blocked off.
Also, once you get the air supply issue solved, it would be helpful to properly insulate the attic stairway opening. Without insulation, this stairway functions as a chimney and just like a well designed fireplace can create quite a suction as the hot air rises up into the attic. Remember hot air always rises. I would be happy to conduct an energy balance study at no cost to you if you are interested. PM me or email jp@jphomeservices.com

[72eagleman]

I agree with everything but your first statement. A correctly installed and engineered solar attic fan should save $200/400.00 year on your electric bill. With a 3-4 year payback on the installed cost and at least a 20 year fan life, you are saving $3.400.00 to $6,800.00. I am also sure that electric costs will continue to increase so the actual savings over time should be even more.

[72eagleman]

Not only will I claim to be an expert, having installed hundreds of fans in the past 18 years, I have extensive training on insulation systems by Owens Corning, the inventor of fiberglass insulation along with technical training from several manufactures and design engineering firms. I have also participated in over $750 million of construction projects spread over the past 52 years. I would suggest that I have acquired enough knowledge and install experience to be referred to as an expert. But at age 74, I am still learning. Just last Friday, I attended an advanced air management seminar in Houston, TX and came away with a few more nuggets of information.

[72eagleman]

Properly engineered systems do not pull air from the interior of the home. They pull air from the soffits.

Regarding point # 2, I strongly disagree. Over the past ten years my company has replaced more than 1,500 roofs and installed hundreds of fans....without even one call back for a leak. Properly installed, it is virtually impossible for an attic fan to leak

3) There are ways to work around blocked soffits if you know what you are doing.

And you have to factor in the experience of the person that wrote the article. I new to this area so I know very little about the solar guys but I was a Solatube distributor for four years commencing in 2004. I have been to the Solatube manufacturing plant in California, and several other solar fan and sun tube manufacturing facilities. Like I said, I do not know the Solar Guys but I do know that I have more engineering and install experience than most salespeople do and I have engineered and installed a very large number of air and water management systems. I have not used sales people to sell my projects for the last seven years, because generally they don't have the same approach and convictions that an owner does.

[jrref]

Properly engineered systems do not pull air from the interior of the home. They pull air from the soffits.

Regarding point # 2, I strongly disagree. Over the past ten years my company has replaced more than 1,500 roofs and installed hundreds of fans....without even one call back for a leak. Properly installed, it is virtually impossible for an attic fan to leak

3) There are ways to work around blocked soffits if you know what you are doing.

And you have to factor in the experience of the person that wrote the article. I new to this area so I know very little about the solar guys but I was a Solatube distributor for four years commencing in 2004. I have been to the Solatube manufacturing plant in California, and several other solar fan and sun tube manufacturing facilities. Like I said, I do not know the Solar Guys but I do know that I have more engineering and install experience than most salespeople do and I have engineered and installed a very large number of air and water management systems. I have not used sales people to sell my projects for the last seven years, because generally they don't have the same approach and convictions that an owner does.
The Solar Guys are pretty good at what they do. They are not an engineering firm but they know the homes in the Villages and where the problems are and what needs to be done to correct them for the specific areas that they address. I think in general the homes here in the Villages are built relatively well and the Solar Guys charge a reasonable price for these upgrades. I'm sure other companies do a good job as well.

[Toymeister]

I agree with everything but your first statement. A correctly installed and engineered solar attic fan should save $200/400.00 year on your electric bill. With a 3-4 year payback on the installed cost and at least a 20 year fan life, you are saving $3.400.00 to $6,800.00. I am also sure that electric costs will continue to increase so the actual savings over time should be even more.

If you are an expert respectfully, you are one who failed mathematics. 55% of your electric consumption is HVAC. You do not need to speculate on that percentage. There are dozens of studies that confirm that or you can simply monitor your own consumption by a device that takes 100,000 measurements of your electrical use per second, that's 8.6 billion times a day, I'd say that's pretty accurate (Home - Sense.com (http://www.sense.com)). I've one and 55% of my electric consumption is HVAC.

So we know in Florida not every month is a cooling month. Let's say it is precisely ten and the portion of your bill purely for kilowatts is $250.00 or $2,500 annually of which $1,375.00 is HVAC.

You are claiming $200 to $400.00 or 14.5% to 29% can be saved by the installation of a solar fan.

If you have facts to support this then you, Sir, are wasting your time here, on TOTV, and should immediately contact Jennifer Grandholm, former Governor of Michigan and current US Department of Energy Secretary. But, in your own interests do protect yourself. I recommend that you find a way to capitalize on this ground breaking energy savings.

Perhaps, I am not giving you credit for altruism, are you the energy equivalent of Dr. Jonas Salk (inventor of polio vaccine) and you are providing this ground breaking version of energy conservation for the good of all mankind without profit? If so then godspeed sir! And thank you!

[Heytubes]

I’ve installed over 1500 solar powered fans. There is a fire fuse. Plus, we covered the ridge vents which are useless unless they are made by air vent.com. Covering the ridge vents prevents negative air flow as the principle is to bring cool air from the soffit vents to displace the hot air from the attic where the unit should be installed. Also, with the 26% Federal solar tax credit makes it less than any thousand dollars. More like $550 to $700 depending upon the 20 to fifty watt unit. The garage vents are very efficient too. But electric and no tax credit. The solar garage vents are efficient and have the 26% tax credit. I’ve installed enough of these to know they work. Retired now, so no dog in this fight.

[Garywt]

We put in a solar attic fan. Made sense to me if only moving some air. Never looked at it for any payback or anything like that. We keep the AC at 80 in the summer since we are not there and if it ever breaks, I will not know since it doesn’t make noise.

Looked into a garage fan this past year but I thought it would vent it to the outside but since it just dumps more hot air into the attic I decided against it.

[nn0wheremann]

Scam or needed? Finding articles leaning both ways and need help deciding if this is waste of money and possibly harmful or is it a great idea and everyone should have them. Thanks for any help,
Waste. Look where they install the fans. See how close to the ridge vent, and far from soffit vents. These fans do nothing to circulate air throughout the attic

[valuemkt]

It is incredibly dangerous to drop your stairs "a bit". That breaks the fire wall, and in case of a fire would act as an accelerant. Unless you;re going up and down stairs / ladder, it should be kept completely shut.

[Fitnusbuf]

Scam or needed? Finding articles leaning both ways and need help deciding if this is waste of money and possibly harmful or is it a great idea and everyone should have them. Thanks for any help,

I am thinking of putting a thermostatically controlled electric garage vent fan in but instead of in the garage where it doesn’t have enough intake air, instead putting it in the lanai where it has all the intake at the same level as the soffits. This should positive pressure the attic and blow hot air out the top, lower overall temperature in the attic, and hopefully lower the garage temp at the same time.
My question is how noisy are the fans operating?
What say you?