Last Updated on May 3, 2023 by Barry Gray
As their name suggests, Bladeless ceiling fans don’t have the large, noticeable rotor blades people typically associate with traditional ceiling fans. The mechanisms they use to move the air around are small and hidden and disperse it differently. Standard ceiling fans gather a lot of dust on the blades and motor casing and are relatively noisy compared to bladeless fans.
The pros of bladeless ceiling fans are that they are safer, quieter, and more energy-efficient, circulate the air better, and don’t accumulate much dust compared to conventional fans. The cons are that they do make some noise, are more expensive, and may have to be installed by a technician.
Bladeless fans sometimes called “air multipliers”, suck in air through slits in the base. Instead of blades, they use stacked spinning discs within an enclosure that destratify the air layers in the room by creating a vortex. This article discusses the pros and cons of these fans.
Pros Of Bladeless Ceiling Fans
Energy Saver is the US Department of Energy’s consumer resource for saving energy and advises on using it more efficiently. It promotes the use of ceiling fans generally as an energy-saving way to cool yourself in the summer by reducing the amount of work done by your air conditioner. Bladeless ceiling fans have several advantages over traditional ones, and their patented design is unique.
Bladeless Ceiling Fans Destratify The Air In A Room
Everyone knows that hot air rises, which means that it accumulates at the highest point of a room, i.e., the ceiling. There are usually air layers or strata of slightly different temperatures in a room, with the cooler air being at floor level. A bladeless fan does not allow these strata to form because it mixes all the air layers together.
A traditional ceiling fan pushes the hot air near the ceiling downwards without really mixing it with the lower, cooler air. A bladeless fan sucks in air from the base and blows it out in a circular vortex faster than it entered the fan. This cools the air and mixes the warmer, higher layer with the cooler layers more evenly.
Bladeless fans thus prevent hot air from being trapped against the ceiling and circulate the air in a room better than a traditional fan. They keep the air temperature uniform throughout the space by creating air curtains as opposed to a draught like conventional fans.
Bladeless Ceiling Fans Are More Energy Efficient
The people at Energy Saver explain that ceiling fans cool you down by creating a wind-chill effect on your skin. They can even eliminate the need to use an air conditioner altogether. A bladeless fan can cool a small room twice as fast as a traditional fan at half the energy. One such fan, developed by researchers at the Nanyang Technological University of Singapore, used only forty-two watts compared to the seventy-five watts required by a conventional fan to do the same job.
The efficiency of a ceiling fan is measured by cubic feet per minute watt or CFM/W. Most bladeless ceiling fans are more energy-efficient than the traditional ones. Their CFM or airflow rating is around five thousand, above average for Energy Saver’s EnergyStar rating for many conventional fans.
The motor of a bladeless ceiling fan does a much lower number of revolutions per minute because it doesn’t have to turn large blades rapidly. The electricity used by bladeless fans is usually between twenty-five and forty watts, lower than many conventional fans.
Bladeless Ceiling Fans Are Easier To Clean
Because they have no blades, bladeless ceiling fans don’t accumulate as much dust as the conventional variety. They can be cleaned with a damp microfiber cloth, vacuum cleaner, or static duster. A traditional ceiling fan can disperse dust that has collected on its blades around a room.
A bladeless ceiling fan doesn’t do this, so it is much more friendly to people with dust allergies. Unlike many traditional fans, some of these fans come equipped with air filtration systems. The air drawn into the fan is cleaned by a filter, such as HEPA filters, before being dispersed around the room.
HEPA is the acronym for High Energy Particulate Air and is the gold standard in air filtration. It was designed to protect researchers from radioactive dust.
Bladeless Ceiling Fans Are Safer
The lack of blades means the fan won’t injure any unsuspecting fingers while you are cleaning it or if the kids have somehow climbed high enough on a piece of furniture to reach the fan. Thanks to this safety characteristic, they can be installed on lower ceilings than conventional fans.
A ceiling is considered low if it is less than eight feet above the floor. The blades of a conventional ceiling fan have to be seven or more feet above the floor. The moving parts of a bladeless fan are enclosed in its base and thus pose a much lower risk of injury.
Bladeless Ceiling Fans Are Quieter
If you are sensitive to noise, you’ll be pleased to know that high-quality bladeless fans are much quieter. The blades of a conventional fan typically make a whooshing sound as they cut through the air and have more moving parts than a bladeless fan.
Bladeless fans are not completely silent as they still have a motor and some moving parts, but reputable brands make much less noise. This makes them ideal for bedrooms and working spaces. They are also less likely to blow your papers and other lightweight items around the room when you turn them on.
Bladeless ceiling fans don’t clack and wobble like many conventional ceiling fans. They are much more stable in their enclosure and don’t vibrate as much.
Cons Of Bladeless Ceiling Fans
There are some disadvantages to bladeless ceiling fans, but many people agree that their advantages outweigh these. They also have a style factor that is very different and more appealing to some than conventional ceiling fans.
Bladeless Ceiling Fans Cost More
Bladeless ceiling fans are still relatively new to the market, and so cost more than conventional ceiling fans. They are also more likely to be still under a patent which adds to the cost. As they increase in popularity, however, the prices could drop. The extra money you spend on a bladeless fan could be recovered in the long run by savings on energy costs.
You May Have To Hire A Professional to Install The Fan
It is best to obtain professional assistance and advice when installing a bladeless ceiling fan because this will help you work out the optimal position for the fan as well as how to connect it to your home electrical system. A bladeless fan may have to be installed by a qualified technician if special wiring or switches are necessary.
Bladeless Ceiling Fans Aren’t Noiseless
The packaging of a bladeless ceiling fan may indicate the amount of noise it makes in decibels or dB. Otherwise, you can look it up in the manufacturer’s specifications. Cheaper bladeless fans may be noisier than better-quality ones.
Larger, more powerful fans may emit a low hum. Usually, the noise level is around forty dB, but it can go a bit higher, depending on the make and quality of the fan. Some bladeless fans emit less than forty decibels. To give you an idea, forty dB is equivalent to the quiet sounds of a public library.
Conclusion
Bladeless ceiling fans are quieter, more energy-efficient, safer, and easier to clean than conventional fans. They are ideal for low ceilings and circulate the air better. The downside is that they cost a bit more, may have to be installed by a professional, and do make some noise.
