Benalla Sustainable Future Group
  • Home
  • ABOUT
    • ABOUT BSFG
    • Advocacy, Education and Lobbying >
      • ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCACY
      • Education
      • Lobbying and Media
    • INTERESTS >
      • Bio-diversity
      • Food and Agriculture >
        • Food & Agriculture
        • Food Co-op
        • Benalla Local Food Network
        • Permaculture and Sustainable Gardening
      • Renewable Energy >
        • Renewable Energy
        • Calculate Your Carbon Footprint
        • Renewable Energy Benalla
        • Benalla Community Energy Project (BCEP)
      • Sustainable Building >
        • Sustainable Building
        • Green Rebuild Toolkit
        • BSFG's Guide to Sustainable Housing
      • TRANSPORT/TRAVEL >
        • Bicycle Action Group
        • Cycling in Benalla
      • Waste/Plastic >
        • Plastic Wise Benalla
        • Single Use Plastics
        • Microfibre shedding
        • Plastic Wise News
    • FUNDING
  • ACTION GROUPS
    • Strategic Objectives
    • Connecting and engaging the community
    • Greening and cooling our Urban Spaces
    • Ecological Sustainable Design and Development*
    • Widespread adoption of sustainable farming systems
    • Waste Wise Benalla
    • BSFG Review - Goals Raw Data
  • Food Co-op
  • REB
  • NEWS
    • News
    • Newsletters >
      • BSFG Newsletter
      • Benalla Permaculture - Feb 2023
    • Hot Topics and Kitchen Table Conversations
    • Light Ideas
    • Gallery
  • JOIN
    • Become a Member
    • Online Membership Form
    • Membership Form
  • Diary
    • BSFG & Food Coop Calendar
    • Environmental Action Days and Events
  • Links
    • BSFG Favourites
    • Catch Up videos
    • Benalla Central Community Garden
    • Benalla Permaculture
    • Bendigo Sustainability Group
    • Climate Ready Hume Newsletter >
      • Late June 2022
      • March 2022
    • Ecoportal
    • Gecko Clan Landcare
    • North East Region Sustainability Alliance (NERSA)
    • Totally Renewable Yackandandah
    • Wangaratta Land Care and Sustainability
  • Contact

Do fans make any difference? A synopsis of a useful article

27/12/2019

2 Comments

 
As someone who has recently updated the ceiling fans in the house, also has a large pedestal fan and a tower fan, and only uses the air conditioner as a last resort, this article captured my eye...

Do fans make any difference during a heatwave?  ABC, Kelsie Iorio, 20 December 2019

"The way a fan keeps you cool is that it either blows cold air across your skin so you lose heat via a process called convection and it helps sweat evaporate faster."

Ollie Jay, an associate professor in thermo regulatory physiology from the University of Sydney's Faculty of Medicine and Health, interviewed for the article, said fans can be extremely beneficial in heatwaves, especially when you know what kind of heat you're dealing with.

Fans are particularly effective when the heatwave is humid - with a recent Australian clinical trial by Dr Jay and his team on the effects of electric fans under different resting heat index conditions finding that in higher humidity, fans reduced core temperature and cardiovascular strain and improved thermal comfort.

"The reason that humidity is very problematic is that it prevents the sweat that you're producing from evaporating. ...The issue is getting the water off the skin and getting it to evaporate so it cools you down. You can really accelerate that evaporation by increasing airflow across the skin."

"When the air goes above 35 degrees Celsius, you're no longer losing heat via convection. But, it still helps sweat evaporate at a faster rate. That's the most important way in which we keep cool."

The Federal Government's YourHome sustainability tool, suggests fans as 'the first choice for mechanical cooling in most Australian climates, recommending any kind of fan, floor, wall, ceiling or stand-alone as the cheapest cooling option to run with the lowest environmental impact.fans. If you don't already have ceiling fans installed, floor fans, pedestal fans or tower fans are readily available and entry-level models are often fairly affordable.  Pedestal fans are apparently really good for generating airflow and don't need to be expensive.  

Dr Jay's research has found the situation regarding the use of fans in hot-dry conditions more complicated, even deleterious, in very hot-dry heat conditions over 42 degrees Celsius.

​However his team's follow up research in both hot-humid and hot-dry conditions has found that externally applying water to the skin using a flannel or spray bottle, even without a fan, and submerging feet in water to manage extreme heat can reduce body heat via evaporation or conduction when body parts are submerged.

"That water evaporates and basically prevents you having to produce too much sweat because it's doing the job sweat does anyway, and it keeps you cool."

After reading the article I feel reassured that I am on the right track in my use of fans, but as the heat waves in my area usually fall into the hot-dry category, am looking in the cupboards for flannels and spray bottles and will be taking particular care to supplement my use of fans with water applying strategies once the temperature enters the late 30C's and 40C's.  

An occasional BLog.
2 Comments
    Luke Davies' Recycled String Band - 'Recycle and Reuse'

    'Light Ideas'

    A community blog of bright ideas and links for lightening our environmental footprint.

    Links

    Plastic Wise Benalla
    Plastic Free July's 'Living Plastic Free'
    Planet Ark's I Heart Recycling on Facebook 

    Ecoportal's 'Living Lightly'

    Topics

    All
    '11 Easy Ways To Reduce Your Plastic Waste'
    '12 Do's Of Christmas'
    '6 Surprising Energy Hacks'
    'Another Use For Single Use Shower Caps'
    Benalla Local Food Network
    Carbon Footprint
    Coping With Heat Waves
    'Determine Your Carrbon Printprint'
    DIY Wax Wrappers
    'Do Fans Make Any Difference'
    E-Cleaning Days
    Grow Free Carts
    Grow Free Movement
    'Handy Uses For Your Old Tablets And Smartphones'
    House Numbering
    'Living Lightly' Articles
    Localisation
    Microfibre Pollution
    Office Works Recycle
    Old Sneakers
    'Organic Origami Bin Liner'
    Plastic Wise
    'Print Friendly'
    Recycle
    Recycling
    REDcycle Bins
    'Reuse'
    Sportspower
    'The Climatarian Diet'
    'The Joy Of Op Shopping'
    Use Your Own Containers
    Veganuary
    WasteWise Benalla
    'What Can I Recycle?'
    'What To Do During A Heatwave'

    Archives

    March 2023
    June 2022
    April 2022
    January 2022
    November 2021
    August 2021
    May 2021
    March 2021
    October 2020
    September 2020
    December 2019
    September 2019
    September 2018
    June 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    June 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015

    RSS Feed

Picture
Picture
Picture
News Blog
​Gallery
Newsletter
Light Ideas
​Hot Topics
Mailing List
Membership Form

Action Groups
​Benalla Food Cooperative
​Connected, Engaged Community
Ecological Sustainable Design and Development
​Greening  and cooling our urban areas 
​
​
​Renewable Energy Benalla
Sustainable Farming Practices
Waste Wise Benalla

​Donate to Support BSFG
​Benalla Sustainable Future Group acknowledges the traditional owners of the land on which we live, work and meet, the Taungerang and Bpangerang people
​of North East Victoria, and pay our respects to their elders past, present and emerging.
Photo used under Creative Commons from Aka Hige