Re: Whole house fan

["Jack Ak" <akjack@xxxxxxxxxx>]

"Jim Baber" <jim@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:SMednY54lPbJz2PfRVn-oQ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
>
> B Fuhrmann wrote:
>
> >Has anyone tried using some sort of powered air input to the house so that a
> >whole house fan can be run without opening windows?
> >
> >
> This could be a good idea, in fact it would solve the difficulty I've
> had with finding actuators suitable for my windows.
>
> >Two ideas are going through my mind:
> >
> >A fan blowing into the lower part of the townhome (a very vertical design)
> >but the air may just make a bee line between that room and the whole house
> >fan.
> >
> >
> Perhaps, if you could vent outside air into the HVAC return air duct so
> that this air would be drawn thru the HVAC plenum and all the normal AC
> delivery ducts into each room with a cooling vent and then finally
> outside from the wholehouse fan.
>
> This outside air vent would probably suffice and might not even need a
> blower. If this airflow did need a boost, the existing "fan" that is
> frequently controlled by the AC thermostat would work, if its was mode
> switch was changed from AUTO to ON.  This plenum vent would require a
> butterfly valve to close the vent into the plenum for normal "auto"
> operation and I know these are available reasonably.
>
> >A fan or a passive input to the forced air system input.  A little more
> >difficult to set up but the cool air would be distributed to all the rooms.
> >
> >With either of these systems, it would only require controlling a couple
> >power circuits to run the system.  No need to figure out how to open/close
> >windows.
> >
> >Any ideas out there?
> >
> I do like your idea

Wouldn't the "other" source of outside air require the same cubic feet/minute
air flow rate as the whole house fan?  Put a second whole house fan in a wall
oriented for inward air flow and turn both on at the same time.  The air flow
wouldn't reach other rooms unless those rooms were in the path between fans.

My whole house fan is thermostat controlled.  I use an X10 Appliance Module
to keep it off when the house is unoccupied.