Fans or air conditioning: the best way to cool your home

Ceiling fans

Ceiling fans are a common way to deal with summer heat, but they do not cool your home. They move air. When moving air passes over the sweat on your skin it speeds up evaporation, and evaporation takes body heat with it. That is why you feel cooler under a fan even though the room is the same temperature.

On humid days there is already a lot of moisture in the air, so less sweat evaporates and the fan gives less relief. On very hot days there is more heat than a fan can help you shed. Evaporative cooling works on the same principle and struggles for the same reason, especially anywhere near the coast.

Fans need very little maintenance. Wipe the dust off the top of the blades with a rag, and check the fan is set to summer mode, which is usually a switch on the fan body. Turn the power off before doing either.

• Pros: low cost, little maintenance, quiet.
• Cons: dust build-up, and no real cooling on hot or humid days.

Air conditioning

Air conditioning is the most common and most effective way to cool a home in summer. Split systems and ducted systems are the two popular configurations. Our guide on split system or ducted covers how to choose between them.

An air conditioner costs more than a fan, and the difference in performance is just as large. Instead of moving warm air around, it removes heat from inside the house and expels it outside. The room gets cooler, and so do the people in it, whatever the humidity.

• Pros: strong cooling, and whole-home options with a ducted system.
• Cons: the upfront cost, and it needs professional maintenance.

Keeping running costs down

Air conditioners are efficient, but they can use a lot of energy if they are run very cold or not looked after. Set the temperature at 25 degrees or higher in summer. Our set point guide has more on this.

Have the system maintained by a licensed air conditioning technician every 12 months. Our guide on what a service should include explains what the technician should do. Between services, washing or replacing the filters is the one job that belongs to the homeowner. See filters explained for how.

When an older system should go

If your air conditioner is 10 to 15 years old it may be using more energy than a new system would, and it is worth looking at replacement. Modern inverter systems are more efficient than the older units they replace. Our guide on inverter compressors explains why.

Replacing an old unit before it fails is a common precaution. Many failures happen in the middle of a hot spell, and a dead air conditioner in a heatwave is the last thing anyone wants. See how to know it is time to replace your air conditioner and replacing an old air conditioner.

Which one suits your home

Ceiling fans are a simple, low-cost way to get some relief on milder days. Their performance is limited, and on the hottest nights they may not be enough for a good sleep.

Air conditioning has an upfront cost, but it deals with the hottest days and nights and lets you sleep well whatever the temperature outside.

If you are wondering what a new system would cost for your home, an accredited dealer can look at the house and quote for it. Our guide on what a proper quote includes explains what to expect from that quote.

Before summer arrives

• Clean the dust off the top of the fan blades, with the power off.
• Check each ceiling fan is switched to summer mode.
• Set the air conditioner to 25 degrees or higher.
• Wash or replace the air conditioner filters.
• Book a 12-month service with a licensed technician if one is due.
• If the system is 10 to 15 years old, get a replacement quote before it fails.

An accredited dealer can tell you whether a new system suits your home and give you a written quote for it. Use the dealer locator to find one near you.