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Summer heat can often be overbearing. That’s why it’s great to have a lineup of the best fans and air conditioners ready to battle the high temperatures. If you’re looking for a fan to help cool your home, it’s a good idea to research the different styles to determine which best suits your space. To help you, let’s examine a box fan vs a window fan and explain the benefits and drawbacks.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
For those who want to know more, we have another great article comparing window fans vs AC units.
Insider Tip
Always place inward blowing window fans in the shadiest areas. Correct placement in a shaded area blows in cool air instead of hot air from a sunny spot.
Knowing how to choose a fan can make all the difference between being oppressed by the summer’s heat and enjoying the season to the fullest. There are so many styles of fans, and one of the lesser-known types is the window fan.
Window fans, aptly named, sit in window frames like an air conditioning unit. If you know how to use a window fan, you’ll understand it requires at least two fans to be effective because they use one inward-blowing fan to bring air into the room while an outward-blowing fan pulls hot air outside. This is also why you often see a window fan unit containing two smaller fans.
On the other hand, box fans work by simply generating air movement within a room, creating a cooling effect for whoever or whatever is in front of it.
Any fan type, whether it be ceiling fans or floor fans, doesn’t actually lower the temperature of a room. Instead, they create a cooling effect on the human body. Window fans, however, can reduce the indoor temperature of a room if the air being blown in is cooler than the air inside the room. For this reason, inward-blowing window fans work best when placed in the coldest areas.
Similar to window fans, air coolers are another great alternative to AC. If you want to learn more about these, you can check out our article comparing air coolers vs fans.
Warning
Window fans require you to have unlocked windows, which creates easier access for break-ins.
Box fans tend to have a more powerful airflow than window fans because they are usually larger and have more powerful motors. On the other hand, window fans tend to be smaller because they are often made to fit a wide range of windows.
Usually, a box fan’s motor creates more noise than window fans. However, window fans allow outside noise to enter the room, which can be far more irritating than a small running motor.
STAT: In the mid-1970s, only 47% of all homes in the United States had air conditioning units. (source)
