Newfound love: The Attic Fan

When we were originally reading the specs on the MLS for this house, my eyes quickly jumped past the words "attic fan." Just like you would read the words, "Living room" or "Stove." Of course it has an attic fan! Doesn't every house? If I was picturing anything at all, it was a little square vent in the roof of the house that would be completely unnoticable from the inside.

Then we were walking through for the first time, and the agent took us to the 2nd floor, and he said, "I don't know if you've ever seen one of these before, it's an attic fan." He flipped a light switch on the wall and the whole ceiling in the hall vented open, a strong fan began blowing, and it immediately felt breezy. I had never heard of one, but I still thought, "Hmm...that's nice." Not one of the boxes that I needed to tick for our new place.

But hold up! I am in LOVE with the attic fan! This thing is so powerful, it is amazing. If you open all the windows in the house and turn that puppy on, there is a constant cool breeze through the house. It makes the place feel 5 - 10 degrees cooler, easily. Here's why I like it:

*Helps not to have to run the A/C as much. It still feels cool in the house even when it's 85 degrees outside.

*It's cheaper to run than the A/C.

*More environmentally friendly? (I actually don't know anything about this, but it seems like it would be true)

*I love having the windows open, and it just increases the length of open-window season.

*The noise helps the kids sleep, I think. It's fairly loud if you are standing right under it - but it's between the kids' rooms, so it helps to drown out household noise while they are sleeping.

Recently I was having a conversation with a neighbor, and he said that the previous owners of our house installed the attic fan so they wouldn't have to get central air. He said they insisted it was just as good as A/C. (They didn't install central air until last year when they decided to sell the place - thanks, guys). I don't think I would go that far. In the dog days of summer, I'm all about air conditioning. I like to walk in the door from being hot and sweaty to a cool feeling house. But I'm loving that the attic fan shortens that season a bit, and makes open windows downright pleasant.

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Katy continues to love school, and we are all enjoying the routine that this fall is bringing. This week we're preparing for my friend Cindy's wedding. One thing I'm looking forward to this weekend is seeing lots of people that I hardly ever see. Cindy and I have been friends for so long (since we were 12!) that going to her wedding is like a family reunion for me. I can't wait to celebrate her big day with lots of fabulous people!