Many people do not realize the difference made with the
reversal of ceiling fans between summer and winter. Ceiling fans
are designed to cool you off during the summer and warm you in
the winter.
Every ceiling fan has a switch. When the temperature level drops
in late fall, flip the switch so the fan is moving clockwise as
you look up to it. This redirects rising hot air back down into
the room, making it feel warmer. Using a fan during the winter
can save as much as 10% to 15% of heating costs. Also remember
to slow down the speed during winter.
During the summer you
want the fan to blow air straight down, so your ceiling fan
needs to run in a counter clockwise direction as you look up at
it. The warmer it is, the higher the speed should be. During the
winter, your fan should run at a low speed in a clockwise
direction, which pushes the naturally rising warm air back down.
Incidentally, the two largest consumers of your energy costs are
heating and air conditioning. Fans can mitigate some of those
costs, because the worst energy guzzling ceiling fans on the
market, on average will likely cost less than 2 cents per hour
to run, depending on local energy costs.