Tech Support

Unique and Challenging Installs – #1

The first challenging install in our series comes from Anker in California. We love this challenging install because of the way he overcame the low attic clearance and the collar beams you can see in the photos (Click photos to enlarge).

Anker’s challenge was to find a suitable damper box location that was free of electrical junction boxes but also did not have a collar beam above it. The next challenge was to find a location for the fan where the ductwork could be installed properly (90 degree bend and fully extended). In this attic the path of the duct and fan would have run into a collar beam. To overcome this Anker made a scale drawing of the attic and also laid out the ductwork on the ground to mock up the installation. His next step was to mount the damper box and then hang the fan. By hanging the fan before attaching the ductwork he was able to determine where it would fit best. The final step was to attach the ductwork to the damper box, feed it over a collar beam and attach it to the fan.

The advice Anker would give anyone doing this installation would be to:

Use a helper when hanging the fan (due to the weight)

Have an electrician wire the outlet

Pre-drill holes for attaching the duct to the fan collar



RELATED POSTS: Unique and Challenging Installs – introduction

How to Wire the Wall Switch

NOTE: This post does not apply to the Kohilo 2.8

All AirScape models, except the Kohilo 2.8, use low voltage controls (24 volt) to turn the unit on/off and switch between high and low speed. Never wire line voltage to your wall switch.

Run 18-22 gauge wire (x3) from the WHF to the wall switch location. Attach the 3 wires to the control board at the screw terminals COM RED, START BLK, and HI SPD BLU/WHT.

Connect the 3 wires to the wall switch (see below). We have pre-wired wire leads to the wall switch to indicate the wire locations. The wire leads correspond to the control board as follows: RED to COM RED, BLACK to START BLK, and WHITE to HI SPD BLU/WHT.

Related Posts: CORRECTLY WIRE YOUR WALL SWITCH

TOP 5 – Things to consider before installing your WHF

(1) Sizing – Size is important when it comes to a whole house fan since air movement is what will be cooling your home. You want to move just enough cool air to grab heat as it radiates out of the building materials. If you don’t move enough air the heat will radiate faster than it can be removed. Check out our Sizing Calculator to determine which WHF is right for your home

(2) Attic venting – The whole house fan will be forcing air into the attic….. it needs a way to escape. If you don’t have enough attic venting the performance of your WHF will be reduced. This is because the majority of its work will be put towards pushing air out of the attic instead of pulling fresh air in through your open windows. Each AirScape model has a certain amount of venting required so it can operate optimally. Use our Attic Venting Calculator to determine how much venting you have.

(3) Location – Is important. Ideally you would install the WHF at the center of the house at the highest point. If your home was a two-story square building with equal window distribution you would mount the unit in center of the attic floor, enabling you to open all windows equally to achieve even cooling. Offsetting the unit one direction or another will change how you open windows. This is not an exact science and will take some trial and error to determine how best to open windows to optimize the cooling in your home.

(4) Attic clearance – Not all attics are created equally. It is a good idea to determine the amount of attic clearance before purchasing an AirScape. All of our models have different clearance requirement. Check out the installation manuals for exact install dimensions.

(5) Power – Is there power in your attic? Every AirScape model comes with a ten foot power cord which we recommend plugging into an outlet instead of hard wiring. You should also take into consideration the amp requirements for the AirScape you are installing.

Correctly Wire Your Wall Switch

This is a brief reminder of the proper location for wiring the wall switch to your AirScape control board. We have noticed that sometimes people, even licensed electricians, wire the wall switch to the auxiliary actuator terminal (red crossed out circle). Wiring at this incorrect location will blow the 3 amp circuit breaker on your unit and possibly damage your control board. Regardless of your experience level we recommend looking at the wiring diagram in the instruction manual before wiring the wall switch. The correct wiring location is indicated by the green circle with check mark.

Related Posts: HOW TO WIRE THE WALL SWITCH

Unique and Challenging Installs – introduction

Did you find your install particularly challenging because of your attic configuration? Did you have a unique install that went beyond the traditional install method? Or are you just proud of your DIY project? If you answered yes to any of these questions we would love to see your installation photos. Hopefully, your unique or challenging install will help someone overcome an obstacle in their installation or just show them what’s possible beyond the norm. With that being said, we are starting an ongoing blog series on unique and/or challenging installs. This series is open to both home owners and installers.

So, if you feel that your installation could be helpful, please send your photos and answers to the questions below to: experts@airscapefans.com

What was the most challenging part of the installation?

On a scale of 1 to 5 how difficult would you rate this installation? (1 easy – 5 difficult)

What advice would you give to someone doing this installation?

How much of a “Do-it-yourselfer” are you? ( 1 what’s a hammer? – 5 fix everything myself)