Ceiling fan with remote | New Power saving Fan – Energy efficient fan & Safe ceiling fan installation guide

Ceiling fan with remote | Power saving Fans. Post is about new generation Power Saving DC ceiling fan buying option. The new generation “ceiling fan” offers high energy efficiency resulting in reduction of about 55% energy costs compared to traditional ceiling fans. This post contains a guide to purchase right Energy saving ceiling fan and the important safety aspects that MUST be considered for ceiling fan installation.

1. Ceiling fan with remote | New Power saving Fan – Type of Fan motor – DC and AC motor

   1. DC Motor – Now a days many brands are there supplying the Fans with DC motors (Blade Less Direct Current Motors or BLDC). The DC Motors are the energy efficient ceiling fan as it consumes less than 50% of the power consumption of an AC motor. AC 230V input cover converted to DC internally through a circuit board or SMPS.
   2. AC Motor – Typical ceiling fans used in every household for generations. These fans use an induction motor.

See below paragraph to see the power consumption comparison between both AC and DC fans.

2. Power consumption – Comparison of AC and DC motor-based fans (BLDC Fan)

   1. Cost of DC / BLDC motor fans will be double the cost of AC motor-based fan. Although one – time costs are more, in a few months, based on your use, you will be able to recover the costs. Use the energy calculator given by an Indian Brand “Super Fan” in the bottom of their website homepage to understand how the BLDC fans can bring high energy savings.
   2. A typical BLDC fan with 1200 mm blades will consume 28 watts of power while a regular fan based on the AC motor will consume 75W to 80W, about 2.8 times the power a BLDC fan uses.
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   4. Manufacturers of BLDC fans claim that they can have a lifetime of about 20 years. The time, however, will tell the product’s reliability. Although Super Fan offers 5 years warranty on BLDC motor, there are only one year warranty for other accessories. For the last 3 + years, I have been using Super Fan A1 and X1 models and had no problems so far.
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   6. BLDC fan consumes low power when the DC fan runs at low speed. For example. at set speed – 1, it may consume 5W while set speed at 3 will consume 15W and consume 28W at full speed. But in the case of an AC fan with an electronic regulator, power consumption can be reduced at lower speed, but the control of DC fan speed will be more efficient. Old type Fan regulators will eat up too much power when fan is running in lower speed. 
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   8. Quieter operation

2. 1. Regular fans with 1200 mm sweep size will give 220 M³ air volume of Air with 350RPM consuming 28W power.
   2. For quieter operation go for fans which have higher air delivery with lower RPM. Eg. Sweep size of 1400 mm with 270 RPM giving air delivery of 270 M³ with a power consumption of 35W. This is ideal for rooms with TV. Infants will be more comfortable when fan operate quietly.

3. Speed control

   1. BLDC fans can be controlled via remote. SuperFan can use the regular power on/off switch to control the speed in addition to the remote. That is if if you just switch on, previously set speed will get selected. If you switch off and on 2 times, speed will get set as 1. Similarly if you switch off and on 3 times, speed will get set as 2. And so on.
   2. Regular AC fan’s speed can be controlled via electronic regulator. Do not use old style resistor bases regulator as it will consume same full power when fan at low speed.

4. Anti-dust feature – The new generation fans are coming with anti-dust feature which will prevent dust accumulation on fan’s blade. Note that it is not 100% dust free in stead it will reduce the dust accumulation up to 50%. This feature is achieved by painting the fan with nano technology paint.

5. Warranty

   1. BLDC fans are coming with 5 years of motor warranty while other parts (comprehensive warranty) are in 1-year warranty. Look for the manufacturer giving longer comprehensive warranty. When I bought, Super fan was offering 5 years comprehensive replacement warranty. But looks like it is changed.

Which is the recommended type of Energy efficient ceiling fan

1. Running cost – BLDC ceiling fan – Need approx. 37% of power consumed by a typical 75W AC motor fan.

2. Buying cost – Around 2 times the cost of regular AC motor fans. See below table for current market price.

Recommendation – DC motor-based BLDC Fan as you can recover the purchasing cost difference in around 24 months, if you use ceiling fan around 10 to 12 hours a day.

3. First Energy efficient Ceiling Fan Brand in India – ‘India’s first super energy efficient ceiling fan’ – Superfan is the first BLDC fan in India and founded in 2012 by Versa Drives Pvt. Ltd, Coimbatore. This claim of being India’s first super energy-efficient ceiling fans is easily verified as there is only one ‘first’.
4. Other Brand Option – Orient Ecotech series Brushless or BLDC motor fans.
5. Other Brand Option – Atomberg Gorilla Fans.
6. Other Brand Option – Havells Efficiencia series energy saving ceiling fans.

Hope that prominent Brands like “Crompton ceiling fans” will also have BLDC type energy efficient fans in the market.

Safety aspects to be considered for installing ceiling fan (Regular or DC Fan)

1. Ceiling height – safety & air volume

   1. Typically, every ceiling fan will come with a downrod which will support the fan blades to hang around 12 inches from the ceiling. 8 to 12 inch gap between ceiling and fan blade will help to have adequate air circulation. Generally the fans will give an air volume of more than 220 M³. For safety purpose, ensure that the bottom of the ceiling fan is at least above 7 feet from the floor.
   2. When height of the ceiling is more, then bottom of the ceiling fan should not exceed more than 8.5 feet from the floor. So, check the length of the downrod offered along with the fan in case if you have higher ceiling height. In these cases, better to consider one sweep size higher when choosing sweep size.
   3. Generally, the flats and houses typically will have 9 feet to 10 feet distance. Thus achieving above specifications may not be a challenge. However verify the above aspects, if possible.

2. Room size & Recommended fan blade sweep size

   1. Room size is 49 Sq. Ft. or less then recommended sweep size is 600 mm. Eg. Balcony, Puja room etc.
   2. Room size is 49 Sq. Ft. to 81 Sq. Ft. then recommended sweep size is 900 mm or 1050 mm
   3. Room size is 100 Sq. Ft. to 120 Sq. Ft. then recommended sweep size is 1200 mm
   4. Room size is 120 Sq. Ft. to 252 Sq. Ft. then recommended sweep size is 1400 mm with 270 M³ air delivery, assuming that the room size is Square. If the room is on L shape or or long rectangle, then recommended to have 2 fans of 1050 mm or 1200 mm sweep size.

3. Other import checks to be performed before installing any fan

[Ensure that blade is NOT hitting the loft doors (when open) when rotated. Adjust loft door positions accordingly.

1. 1. Make sure the BLDC fan is not connected to the switch board via the electronic regulator. This is because for its AC to DC power conversion mechanism, the BLDC fan needs direct power input to work normally. Speed control only via the remote OR ON/OFF power switch (if feature is there in the model selected by you). The BLDC fan will not operate normally if the BLDC fan is connected via the electronic regulator.

You may refer the “AC Buying – Complete Installation & Maintenance Guide” to know whole information about AC.

Also I would recommend you to read my article – Tyre Burst Accident – Reasons & 1 MUST AVOID and 3 MUST Do to save your life.

Disclaimer– Through this blog, I share my understanding and experience. Every effort is made to avoid errors. It is not possible to rule out chances of error, however. If you try any ideas or tips given this Blog, it is solely on your risk. I won’t be liable, if you suffer any loss or damage.

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