Now that summer is in full swing, cooling down at the end of the day is at the top of everyone’s mind. Aside from running lots of fans and cold showers, one cooling technology that’s getting a lot of attention is the QuietCool whole house fan. These energy-efficient systems provide flexibility to ventilate homes, including those that rely on windows and natural airflow.
Darren Shibuya is one of those who made the decision to be proactive before the heat of summer. “I live in a very hot area of Kaimuki, and we chose to install whole house fans in 2012,” he stated. “Since then, we were able to cut down our use of A/C to just the hottest days of summer.
“QuietCool keeps my house cool by themselves most of the year. Besides just cooling the house, it circulates the air while it is on, and I feel it has helped my allergies to dust,” Shibuya added.
Ivan Whitworth of Island Cooling explained how QuietCool works. “Installed in the attic, it draws out heat from the living space and pushes trapped hot air out of the attic vents, bringing in fresh air from outside. Since it’s natural ventilation you can go in and out without having to keep all the windows closed.”
Island Cooling co-owner and Ivan’s brother Al Whitworth pointed out that since the fan is also blowing heat out of the attic, homeowners find that even on hot days, QuietCool is the difference between keeping the home comfortable or not.
That was the case for Mary Humphrey of Kailua. Humphrey’s home was exposed to a lot of sun, and running the A/C full time was not the type of cooling she wanted. Since energy use is as little as 120 watts (four cents per hour), this translates into savings on the monthly electricity bill.
“After installing our Quiet-Cool, the inside temperature started dropping right away,” said Humphrey. “It works, every home should have them.”
Island Cooling LLC is Hawaii’s distributor of QuietCool. Along with offering systems to the public and through retail partners, whole house fans are also available for self-installation by building professionals and do-it-yourselfers.
Visit the company’s website at IslandCooling.com or call 672-2300 for more information.