Cool Wall Fans
Hot summer afternoons can be uncomfortable even in the best insulated of homes. As the radiation of the sun hits against the roof and siding, or comes streaming in through the window, the heat gets trapped by the structure and warms the interior.
Running the air conditioner is getting more and more expensive, and cools the whole house even if you only need cooling in one room. It’s just not efficient. Wall fans on the other hand are very efficient. While they won’t actually cool the temperature of the room, they make it feel a lot more comfortable. This is because air movement helps evaporate moisture on your skin, and that causes a cooling sensation.
Unlike central air conditioning, the effect of the wall fan is only where you want it. You can direct the fan to blow a cooling breeze wherever you need it. Because of this exactitude, and the inherent efficiency of electric fans, you’ll spend a lot less money for the same cooling when using wall fans.
Other types of fans can work well too. Window fans can help exhaust hot air, or bring in cooler air. You need to have a window in the right place though, which means you don’t always have direct coverage of areas you’d like to cool.
Ceiling fans are great for cooling large areas, but they do end up blowing the hottest air in the room back down which defeats the purpose somewhat. Also, you don’t have much flexibility in where you direct the air with ceiling fans. They blow air straight down, which is great if you’re under them, not so useful if you’re not.
Floor fans are the closest analog to wall fans as far as how efficient they are. You can place a floor fan just about anywhere, so the cooling is always right where you want it. The difference between a floor fan and one mounted on the wall is that you’re trading floor space for flexibility. The floor fan can actually be used in more places, but will take up more space. Which is better for you is going to depend on many different specifics about the situation.