7 Things You May Not Know About Ceiling Fans

Here we are in the middle of the air conditioning season. So why don't we chop down some myths and misconceptions about ceiling fans? What got me on to this topic was a video of a fan with blades that hide on top of the fan when the fan is turned off. Sounds clever, but it's a ridiculous idea.

Anyway, here are seven things about ceiling fans that a lot of people seem not to know.

1. Ceiling fans heat the room
Yes, a ceiling fan is a cooling device. (See number 2 below.) But its effect on the room it's in is to add heat. Why? Because electric motors are devices that turn electrical energy into mechanical energy, most of which ends up as heat. The infrared image below shows a ceiling fan motor that's hotter than the room it's in. From the second law of thermodynamics, we know where that heat is going — into the cooler room.

What are the other 6....