Air Circulating Fan

[bbc557ci]

Any suggestions for a good air circulating fan?

I bought a small'ish house in May that came with a Harman p35i already in place. After a good cleaning the stove is cruising along nicely and heats the living room where it's located really well. I'd like to be able to move some of the warm air around to other rooms. I've been using an inexpensive 20 inch box fan and it works ok, kind of. But the fan is pretty noisy and isn't really all that efficient. Any suggestions for an air mover/fan that will do the job and not all that noisy?

Thanks in advance for any advice offered (o:

 

[djlew]

Hey there, I've had some success with a box fan working with my wood stove. A bit of a different type of stove, but hey. Basically creating a convection loop where cooler air is pulled into the stove room to warm up, freeing up space for warm air to then move into the room(s) you are attempting to heat.

I've been in the same boat here recently. What does your house layout look like? I ask because depending on the layout, a "through wall" transfer fan could be an option. There are some on Amazon that have great reviews. Not particularly elegant, in my opinion, but definitely more elegant than a box fan! It gets more complicated, like in my case where I don't have a direct "through wall" type of situation and would need a fan that takes ductwork. Bathroom vent fans seem like they'd work in this case, but more work.

How do you have the box fan setup? Fan pointed towards rooms needing to be heated or pulling cold air into the stove room? Just in my experience, pulling the cold air from the rooms into the stove room and not trying to push the heat into the rooms needing heat works much better.

Good luck and keep us posted!

 

[Washed-Up]

And you want to blow the cold air towards the stove, it works real well

 

[Dataman]

I have Harmon XXV and blow warm air toward laundry room. About 30ft away. 70f in Living Room with Harmon and 56f in Laundry Room. Pretty straight shot. Of course it's -21f this AM too. Normally it's 74f in Living Room and 65f in Laundry Room. I put 20x20 Filter on the fan and run one on low and one on high. I have big rubber bands holding filter in place. (Garbage Gripper Band, 1 Pack of 2 Bands,White). Really going thru Pellets at -21f. 2+ Bags.

 

[bigealta]

A small 10” or 12” on low speed does a pretty good job for me.

 

[tbear853]

The more efficiently you move warm air from that living room to the rest of the house to heat them areas, the cooler that living room will be.

 

[ABusWrench]

We use a "Vornado" brand fan in the kitchen/dining/family room area. Powerful yet quiet on lower settings.

 

[Hoytman]

Any suggestions for a good air circulating fan?

I bought a small'ish house in May that came with a Harman p35i already in place. After a good cleaning the stove is cruising along nicely and heats the living room where it's located really well. I'd like to be able to move some of the warm air around to other rooms. I've been using an inexpensive 20 inch box fan and it works ok, kind of. But the fan is pretty noisy and isn't really all that efficient. Any suggestions for an air mover/fan that will do the job and not all that noisy?

Thanks in advance for any advice offered (o:

That box fan will work perfectly.
Turn on low, leave it on low all the time.
Place at furthest end if the house blowing towards the stove room.

If you have a ceiling fan(s) employ those as well.

 

[Hoytman]

Hey there, I've had some success with a box fan working with my wood stove. A bit of a different type of stove, but hey. Basically creating a convection loop where cooler air is pulled into the stove room to warm up, freeing up space for warm air to then move into the room(s) you are attempting to heat.

I've been in the same boat here recently. What does your house layout look like? I ask because depending on the layout, a "through wall" transfer fan could be an option. There are some on Amazon that have great reviews. Not particularly elegant, in my opinion, but definitely more elegant than a box fan! It gets more complicated, like in my case where I don't have a direct "through wall" type of situation and would need a fan that takes ductwork. Bathroom vent fans seem like they'd work in this case, but more work.

How do you have the box fan setup? Fan pointed towards rooms needing to be heated or pulling cold air into the stove room? Just in my experience, pulling the cold air from the rooms into the stove room and not trying to push the heat into the rooms needing heat works much better.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Great post and information.

Been doing this same thing for years and my grandmother, deceased for 30 years, did the same thing and it works flawlessly.

 

[sandpipe]

Great post and information.

Been doing this same thing for years and my grandmother, deceased for 30 years, did the same thing and it works flawlessly.

I add a humidifier next to my fan to circulate the hot air with the moisture throughout the house. It keeps the humidity at around 52%. Without it the house drops down to the mid 40% level. The extra 7% humidity makes a big difference.

 

[Dataman]

The more efficiently you move warm air from that living room to the rest of the house to heat them areas, the cooler that living room will be.

Correct. Made about 10f difference. Went from 58f to 68f in Laundry Room. But it was little cooler in Living Room. Extreme cold almost over. -16f this AM. Should be 20's for low soon

 

[Hoytman]

Correct. Made about 10f difference. Went from 58f to 68f in Laundry Room. But it was little cooler in Living Room. Extreme cold almost over. -16f this AM. Should be 20's for low soon

Yes…the heat has to come from somewhere.

To others reading…
Leave the fans on long enough and the overall house temperature will stabilize…that is, the rooms furthest away will rise as far as they will rise and the stove room will cool slightly until it too reaches the lowest point it will drop, but there will be a temperature differential between the two just as there was before employing the fans. All that means is leave the fans on (furthest point of the house pointing towards the stove) and turn the stove up a tad to put the stove room back to target temperature. The result will be even more slightly warmer bedrooms and the differential will remain approximately the same.

 

[Hoytman]

I add a humidifier next to my fan to circulate the hot air with the moisture throughout the house. It keeps the humidity at around 52%. Without it the house drops down to the mid 40% level. The extra 7% humidity makes a big difference.

Adding a humidifier works for those who can use them. I’d use them also if I were burning wood as the stove top gets hotter with wood.

As it stands now I burn anthracite coal and because of that air flow above the fire is restricted and pushes heat to all 4 sides of the stove while a heat exchanger on top of the stove (for convection air) keeps the stove top cool. The heat is nice and even 24/7 once I light this stove but for me the issue is the stove being too large throwing too much heat into my house and the result is a cool running stove with a stove top temperature of about 175F while it’s 5F outside…I can’t even boil water…and that sucks…but I’m plenty warm. It dropped to -31F here last year and I still had only 179F stove top. 😂

For added reference it’s currently 5F outside and the front of my stove is 270F and the side is 250F. Barely working it is….🤣😂🤣😂

So you add a humidifier next to your fan? Sounds like your fan must be on your stove.

 

[sandpipe]

....."So you add a humidifier next to your fan? Sounds like your fan must be on your stove."

My fan and humidifier are in the loft space above the room with the pellet stove. It's a cathedral ceiling so I blow the hot air back down to the 1st floor where the stove is along with the humidified air. The humidity equalizes in the entire house after several hours and stays that way as long as I keep it filled with water.. If it runs out the humidity slowly drops as time passes until it's back down to the mid 40's.

 

[Hoytman]

....."So you add a humidifier next to your fan? Sounds like your fan must be on your stove."

My fan and humidifier are in the loft space above the room with the pellet stove. It's a cathedral ceiling so I blow the hot air back down to the 1st floor where the stove is along with the humidified air. The humidity equalizes in the entire house after several hours and stays that way as long as I keep it filled with water.. If it runs out the humidity slowly drops as time passes until it's back down to the mid 40's.

Ok…so you’re using an actual humidifier then and NOT just a steam pot on top of the stove like I first thought. Makes more sense knowing what you’re doing now. I certainly agree additional humidity makes a difference.

 

[Pelleting In NJ]

753 Large Air Circulator - Vornado

Whole Room Vortex Circulation Moves Air 100 ft. Multidirectional Air Flow Easy To Clean Whisper Quiet 3 Speed Control Energy Saver 5 Year Warranty

www.vornado.com

 

[Jeremy6500]

I use a couple of box fans and blow the cooler air from the floor towards the stove. Works pretty well.

 

[mellow]

I have been using regular fans and ceiling fans to move the air for a long time. I have known about Vornado fans for a while but didn't want to spend the $$ on one.

I finally broke down and got one from Lowes this weekend so I could return it if I didn't like it after reading posts about it.

All I have to say is, WOW. I got the 533 because that was what was in stock but it is actually the perfect size for my setup, this thing MOVES some hot air. I was using fans to blow cold air into the room with the pellet stove but now I am using the Vornado to push the hot air out into the rest of the house and it has been a game changer. I could only get the hallway on the other side of the rancher to 70-72 degrees. On Saturday with it being in the teens outside I had it 76 degrees! No other changes other than turning off the ceiling fans and all the other fans and using the vornado to blow out the heat.

I should have done it sooner.

 

[Jeremy6500]

I have been using regular fans and ceiling fans to move the air for a long time. I have known about Vornado fans for a while but didn't want to spend the $$ on one.

I finally broke down and got one from Lowes this weekend so I could return it if I didn't like it after reading posts about it.

All I have to say is, WOW. I got the 533 because that was what was in stock but it is actually the perfect size for my setup, this thing MOVES some hot air. I was using fans to blow cold air into the room with the pellet stove but now I am using the Vornado to push the hot air out into the rest of the house and it has been a game changer. I could only get the hallway on the other side of the rancher to 70-72 degrees. On Saturday with it being in the teens outside I had it 76 degrees! No other changes other than turning off the ceiling fans and all the other fans and using the vornado to blow out the heat.

I should have done it sooner.

Where do you have the fan mounted/sitting?

 

[mellow]

Where do you have the fan mounted/sitting?

I tried it blowing cold air in like previous fans and it did OK. I figured for kicks and giggles I would try putting it up high in the same room as the stove and point it towards the door I want to blow the hot air towards.

I currently have it sitting on top of a bookshelf so it is about 2-3ft from the ceiling with a book under the back so it angles down more. I have a corner install pellet stove so the hot air from it is being blown out that door now.

I have a rancher so the bedrooms are on the other side of the house (1600 sq ft house) but it is a straight shot from that door, I can now stand in my bedroom with the door open and feel the heat coming in, I was not expecting that.

 

[Jeremy6500]

I tried it blowing cold air in like previous fans and it did OK. I figured for kicks and giggles I would try putting it up high in the same room as the stove and point it towards the door I want to blow the hot air towards.

I currently have it sitting on top of a bookshelf so it is about 2-3ft from the ceiling with a book under the back so it angles down more. I have a corner install pellet stove so the hot air from it is being blown out that door now.

I have a rancher so the bedrooms are on the other side of the house (1600 sq ft house) but it is a straight shot from that door, I can now stand in my bedroom with the door open and feel the heat coming in, I was not expecting that.

Interesting. I may have to try this. My house is a ranch that is shaped like an "L". I have a pellet stove at each end with box fans blowing at them. Works decent, but not great.

 

[bigealta]

How quite is it on low?

 

[mellow]

How quite is it on low?

The vornado?

On low it is super quiet. I don't have a sound meter but on medium the blower on the pellet stove is louder than the vornado.

 

[bigealta]

yes the vornado, looking for a small super quite fan. i know those vornado fans used to be excellent. Glad to hear they still seem good.