Last updated on August 14th, 2022 at 01:28 pm
A ceiling fan uses very minimal energy compared to alternative cooling methods like air conditioners. There are several ways to calculate the exact quantity of electric current a ceiling fan uses; getting in touch with the manufacturer is one of these ways.
On the other hand, the amperage of most ceiling fans falls within a pretty narrow range. Thus, you may still wonder about exactly how many amps a ceiling fan uses.
Newer designs of ceiling fans utilize less than one amp, with an average being in the neighborhood of 0.5 and 1 amp. However, these values depend on the design of the fan and how it is set. Also, setting the fan on low speed uses less electric current, while setting the fan on a higher speed consumes more. For instance, a ceiling fan moving at a low speed utilizes around 0.5 amp, medium speed, approximately 0.4 amp, while high speed utilizes about 0.6 amp.
How Many Ceiling Fans Can Be on a 15 amp Circuit?
Different circuits support specific loads capacities, which define the extent to which they support connected devices. Nevertheless, four ceiling fans should comfortably run on a 15 amp circuit unless the circuit carries some other appliances. This applies to ceiling fans of 90 to 100 watts and below.
This number comes about because of the amperage of these ceiling fans. This means that if you run several average ceiling fans on a 15 amp circuit, you can attach more than four.
However, attaching fans that are running at the highest speed will see the performance of the circuit drop down to a certain threshold. At this point, the circuit can only function properly with four ceiling fans.
Take an instance of a 55-inch ceiling fan with a wattage of 90 to 100 running at the highest speed. Also, imagine three other 60 watt light bulbs on the setup. This puts each fixture at around 280 watts.
A 120 volt 15 amp circuit can supply 1880 watts. Nevertheless, other people insist that you load the circuit to a maximum of 80 percent carrying capacity. This percentage on a 120 volt 15 amp circuit would be 1440 watts. Despite this, the 15 amp circuit can still support four ceiling fans.
The newer models of ceiling fans that electronics manufacturers are designing are being designed to minimize power use. This phenomenon enhances the energy efficiency of these appliances and reduces cost on a general note.
How Much Electricity Does a Ceiling Fan Use in 24 Hours?
A standard ceiling fan has a rated power of 75 watts. Therefore, using a 75 watts fan for 24 hours will consume 1800 watts of electricity (75 X 12). In the same way, if your fan has a rating of over 75 watts, there’s an easy way to calculate its consumption. And to get the power consumption in 24 hours, you multiply the rate by 24 hours.
Watts and kilowatts are units of power that describe the rate at which a device consumes electric power. For instance, a 100-watt television consumes energy at the rate of 100 watts per hour. Note that 1000 watts equal 1 kilowatt. On the other hand, a kilowatt equals a unit of electricity.
The amount of electricity that a ceiling fan consumes within specific times has been a topic of several debates. However, its designers and manufacturers have tried their best over the years to estimate and establish the exact value of electricity consumption.
The power consumption depends on the sweep or radius of the blades, the air delivery rate, and the motor’s revolution per minute. However, most ceiling fans have rated power of 60 to 100 watts for an exact figure.
Nevertheless, if you want to know the rates of power of your ceiling fan, you can check the fan’s specifications on Amazon. Also, you can Google the name of your fan to get the specifications on the manufacturer’s website.
Does Ceiling Fan Consume Less Electricity at Slow Speed?
A typical AC-powered multi-speed fan uses more power at higher speeds. This is because higher work is done to move air at a higher speed; to be clear, the motors of fans work at a higher rate to move more air. In the same way, keeping it as slow as possible will consume less energy.
In the earliest designs of electric fans, the regulators were resistors. These regulators are used to resist the flow of electric current, thus causing less speed, but the resistors have to function at high levels. Therefore, there was no change in the flow of electricity.
However, in modern designs of electric fans, a new type of regulator is used, which is the capacitive regulator. This one controls the electric current flow, and the current consumption is always proportional to the fan’s speed.
So in the case where your electric fan uses the old type of regulators, the electricity consumption would be constant even at different speeds.
So we can conclude that electricity consumption remains constant for specific designs of electric fans despite the speed. You will reduce electricity consumption at reduced speed for other designs and kinds of electric fans in another vein.
Consequently, keeping the fan at a low speed would mean a lower electricity bill for you for the second type of fan.
How Do I Calculate Ceiling Fan Power Consumption?
To calculate the power consumption of your fan, you have to know the wattage of your fan. Additionally, you will have to record the period you keep the fan on.
For instance, if you have four fans each of 75 watts in your house, one each in the living room, bedroom, and study, each of these fans run for 4 hours a day and 4 hours during the nighttime. Due to specific reasons, you would love to know how much these fans consume in a day or the entire month.
I’ll calculate power consumption for one fan and then multiply it by four to get the final power consumption.
- Power consumption by one fan in a day = Rated power of fan X operational hours
- Power consumed by one fan in a day = 75 watts X 12 hours
- The power that one fan consumes in a day = 900 watt-hours
- The power that one fan consumes in a month = 900 watt-hours X 30 (Days in one month)
- The power that one fan consumes in a month = 27 000 watt-hours = 27 kWh
- Power consumed by 4 fans in a month = 27 kWh X 4 = 108 kWh
Therefore, to calculate the power consumption of your fan, you should correctly determine the specifications of the fan. Otherwise, your calculation will be null and void. However, there are specific ways to determine the wattage of your appliances. The most popular are the manufacturer information and the retailer information.
Which Fan Consumes Less Electricity, Ceiling Fan or Table Fan?
If you are worried about the hit electricity bills, you have to pay each month, and the table fan is just for you. Manufacturers of electronics are producing newer models of table fans which consume less electricity than ceiling fans. Thus, any standard table fan will use just up to 50 to 90 watts of electricity.
In the earlier days, people used to have bulky ceiling fans, which consumed a high power of about 150 watts. However, with the advent of modern technology, brands have upgraded their models recently. Now, the best ceiling fans you can obtain will consume 70 to 75 watts of electricity.
Some brands have also developed energy-saving technologies in their high-end models. As a result, this particular type of ceiling fan consumes few quantities of energy on average.
On the other hand, table fans use comparatively lower electric power to function than modern ceiling fans. Newer table fans use between 50 to 55 watts of electricity. However, running the table fan at high speed will use more power to function. This power spans between 65 and 110 watts.
When the electricity bill is a significant concern, you should try any of these designs. These products are trendy and have substantial positive feedback.
Conclusion
Generally, ceiling fans do not use too much electricity compared to other ventilation methods. However, the amperage of other fans’ designs varies with their different characteristics and functionalities.