Air conditioners provide essential cooling and humidity regulation within our homes. Without these essential systems, the California sun would render interiors hot, muggy, and uncomfortable. However, running your system’s fan at all times may not improve indoor moisture like you expect.
Many homeowners ask, “Does running the fan on my air conditioner reduce humidity?” Answering this question requires understanding how the AC fan regulates humidity and assists climate control. Depending on the circumstances, the answer could be yes or no.
When your system suffers damage, or you need an upgrade, call El Cajon’s air conditioning installation experts from Maximum Comfort Heating & Air Conditioning. Our professionals utilize the best tools and techniques to install and maintain your home comfort systems.
What Is an AC Fan?
The AC fan in your system serves as the air cycling mechanism within your home. While many homeowners believe that air conditioners just blow cool air into their property, the fan actually cycles air throughout the system to provide temperature control.
Your AC fan attaches to both the indoor and outdoor components of your unit. With the ability to bring in indoor and outdoor air, your fan serves as an essential component of indoor climate control.
How Does an AC Unit Remove Heat and Humidity From Your Home?
Many people don’t realize how AC units cool their homes. Rather than create cool air, the various mechanisms within your system remove heat and humidity from air cycling.
When your AC fan ushers air into your HVAC unit, it runs over the evaporator coils. These coils combine air with a chemical called refrigerant. Refrigerant condenses heat and excess moisture from this air to control humidity levels.
So you’d think the answer to “Does running the fan on my air conditioner reduce humidity?” would be yes—not exactly. Since evaporator coils only emit refrigerant during cooling cycles, running your fan constantly can actually reduce air quality and increase humidity.
The Drawbacks of Running Your Fan Constantly
After successful cooling, condensation from refrigerant gathers on your evaporator coils. If your fan continues bringing air into the system afterward, it will run over the evaporator coils and could pick up this excess moisture. Thus, running your fan excessively could actually increase your home’s humidity by reintroducing this moisture.
Running your fan constantly also makes your system less energy efficient and expensive. You may notice increased utility expenses each month if you keep your fan running.
Change Your Thermostat Settings
The best way to avoid humidity increases within your home is to change your fan’s thermostat setting. When you set your fan to “ON,” it will run indefinitely.
Change this setting to “AUTO” so your fan only runs during cooling cycles. Adjusting your thermostat settings optimizes your system’s humidity control capabilities.
Other Ways to Reduce the Indoor Humidity Level
Besides thermostat adjustments, there are other ways to control moisture inside. Avoid the discomfort of humidity within your property by employing the control measures below.
1. Ventilate as Needed
Increasing ventilation in rooms where humidity is more prominent offers an excellent solution for excess moisture. Various tasks in bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms use hot water and can increase your property’s humidity.
Turning on a vent fan or fume hood while operating moisture-producing mechanisms can reduce humidity within your home. These spot ventilation techniques also increase HVAC energy efficiency.
2. Optimize Your Fan Speed
Your fan needs to rotate at certain speeds to move air through your system. Natural wear and tear can negatively impact fan speed. Call a professional for tune-ups and maintenance to optimize your fan.
3. Install a Dehumidifier
Dehumidifiers can integrate into your HVAC system to increase humidity control. With the ability to run before, during, and after cooling cycles, dehumidifiers keep your indoor air clean, crisp, and dry.
4. Check Refrigerant Levels and Adjust Accordingly
Refrigerant levels play a major role in the ability of your HVAC system to provide cool air throughout your property. Refrigerant levels can become low because of natural cycling or leaks in your system. Professionals can provide routine checks and restore optimal refrigerant levels to avoid excess moisture in your indoor air.
5. Change Air Filters Regularly
Air filters gather dust and grime that contribute to increased humidity and degrade air quality. Hiring professionals to routinely change your air filters protects against discomfort caused by warm, moist indoor air.
6. Eliminate Standing Water
Even in small amounts, standing water can increase humidity levels in your property while also encouraging mold and mildew growth. Furthermore, large amounts of standing water can cause severe water damage to your property. After cooking, cleaning, or bathing, do your best to reduce and eliminate standing water in your home to avoid these consequences.
7. Upgrade Your System
Old air conditioning systems don’t always provide optimal climate control capabilities. Depending on the age or model of your HVAC unit, receiving an upgrade from professionals might significantly improve your indoor moisture levels. Call Maximum Comfort Heating & Air to update your indoor climate control system today.
Maintaining the Feeling of Constant Airflow Without Running Your Fan
Some people like the feeling of constant air flowing through their vents, even outside of cooling cycles. To avoid increasing the humidity in your home, try implementing these methods to achieve the same effects without drawbacks:
- Set AC fans to AUTO but keep ceiling fans on
- Install a variable-speed air conditioner that runs constantly
- Integrate a whole-house dehumidifier into your system
Enlist Professional AC Maintenance and Repairs from Maximum Comfort Heating & Air Conditioning
Contact the professionals from Maximum Comfort Heating & Air Conditioning for dependable AC maintenance, repairs, and replacements in El Cajon, CA. Our experts maintain a top-notch reputation in the local industry for quality workmanship, excellent customer service, and timely repairs. We’ll keep your home comfort systems running at optimal levels year-round.
For more answers to the question, “Does running the fan on my air conditioner reduce humidity?” or to schedule service, call (619) 949-1039 and request a free quote from Maximum Comfort Heating & Air Conditioning today.