Moving that hot air. Not that kind!..

[tahoostas]

So I fired up the stove and decided to try the fans blowing cold air toward the stove method (thank Begreen, I've read many a post where you've advised this...as well as others!).
I fired it up and waited until it was pumping some heat then put the fan at the end of our hall (opposite side of the house from the stove and right next two the bedroom doors) pushing toward the stove. Got the incense out that I bought just for this and went draft hunting! Sure enough, about 3 feet from the fan blowing at a doorway into a bedroom, the smoke was pouring into the room at shoulder height!! I bet it would be even better if I cut vents above the doors for hot air movement.
Stove room temp was 23.3*C. Bedroom temp was 21.5*C. I expect this difference will be higher when it's -30*C outside but I noticed a big difference from the morning fire not using the fan to tonight's.
Thanks hearth.com....learned do much and will learn much more I'm sure.
Evan.

 

[begreen]

There's lots of experts at moving hot air here.

 

[tahoostas]

 

[Beer Belly]

I've been telling my buddy to try this for years.....I think he may try it this year. Glad it worked out for you, and yes, a lot of knowledge here, and I'm a willing student

 

[kingston73]

How low is the fan and how far away from the stove room should it be?

 

[tahoostas]

Well I was just using a pillar style fan, will probably get a small one eventually. I was blowing on the lowest speed.
I have a bi-level with about 1000sq ft on each floor. My stove is on one far end of the house centred depth wise on that side , and the fan was placed on the opposite side of the house at the end of the hall. I'll try to attach a rough pic.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

How low is the fan and how far away from the stove room should it be?

A desktop fan rather than a pedestal fan works best so the fan sits right on the floor. As to how far away, that depends upon your situation.

Tahoostas, I'd suggest you also try moving the fan. Try it in a couple of spots. In our house if we use the fan, we set the fan at the start of the hallway. There are 3 rooms behind the fan and they all heat up nicely. We tried moving it way back but it just seemed to work best right at the start of the hallway.

 

[tahoostas]

Will do. I'll try some combos once we are burning regularly. Thanks for the tip!

 

[jeff_t]

I found moving it as little as a foot can make a big difference on how much air gets moved around. Tape some strips of TP at the tops of your doorways, and experiment moving the fan. The TP will really flutter in the breeze, and give you a visual indicator of what is going on.

 

[Dix]

I agree with playing with fan placement, it can make a huge difference !

Ceiling fans can be a big player, as well !

 

[tahoostas]

There's gonna be TP and incense like crazy!

 

[Charles1981]

Am i part of some hippie forum? Incense, TP...whats next... sniffing out patchoulie.

 

[Dix]

Am i part of some hippie forum? Incense, TP...whats next... sniffing out patchoulie.

Naah, but there are a bunch of peeps here who know about that chit

 

[tlingit]

Anyone tried a kettle fan? A friend just put one in and loves it. Says so much air is moved, his whole house is more comfortable.

 

[mass_burner]

do you mean the entrance to the hallway, from the room where the stove is?

 

[begreen]

Try it at the far end of the hallway furthest away from the stove as long as this provides a direct shot to the stove room. Put the fan, pointing toward the stove room, on the floor and run it on low speed.

 

[mass_burner]

i'm confused. my hallway is about 12-14 feet long with a straight shot to LR. are u saying a or b?

a. 3 bedrooms---FAN-->hall ----------->hall door way >-----stoves1--stove 2

b. 3 bedrooms---hall ------------>hall door way >FAN-->----stove 1--stove 2

 

[tahoostas]

Could try both. I tried what I think is your option a. The fan being furthest away from the stove and living room. I'm going to try both at my place but will prob stick with option a as that's where the fan will make most sense (not tripping over it).

 

[mass_burner]

i'll try a, but i'm not hopeful. the end of my hall is at the opening of two BR's. then at the other end, a few feet before the door way is another BR and a bath/laundry area. i would like this to work, as it leaves the doorway unblocked.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

i'll try a, but i'm not hopeful. the end of my hall is at the opening of two BR's. then at the other end, a few feet before the door way is another BR and a bath/laundry area. i would like this to work, as it leaves the doorway unblocked.

This is why it will be good to try it in different spots. After a week or less you'll never change again although it is still a bit difficult at this time of the year as it is not very cold yet.

 

[mass_burner]

How strong of a fan are we talking here?

 

[firefighterjake]

How strong of a fan are we talking here?

Doesn't have to be much to start the air moving . . . seems like once the air starts moving it sort of sustains itself as the cold air and warm air exchange places through the normal heat rising and cool air falling deal.

 

[brenndatomu]

Ha! That reminds me of a post I read on another site last year about how this dude got his airflow "jump started" He had a big ole house with a front and rear stairway, he said if he ran up the front stairs over to the back stairs, go down, repeat again, the air flow would self sustain once started. I remember this one because of the mental image of someone doing this...

 

[rowerwet]

I use these type of fans, they move a lot of air, are easy to aim, and seem like the most air for the least money. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Comfort-Zone-CZHV9B-9-in-3-Speed-High-Velocity-Cradle-Fan/21784130
I pad $15 for most of mine