Industrial Fans vs. Air Conditioners for Cooling Industrial Facilities

The ability to exert control over our environment by way of temperature and humidity has been a game-changer for human civilization - especially for our modern, technology-driven society. 

The concept of providing cooling to interior climates is often written off as a modern convenience. The truth is that this power does indeed provide comfort, but comfort isn’t analogous to laziness. What a comfortable environment can promote is a sense of well-being, and a healthy mental state translates directly to improved efficiency and achievement.

Many large manufacturing and commercial businesses focus on providing some level of climate control to make sure their laborers and personnel are not uncomfortable. Rather than sweating profusely in a sweltering warehouse of stale air, HVAC systems and/or industrial fans provide cooling in order to provide relief and to keep efficiency and morale up. 

In this article, we’ll discuss air conditioning vs. industrial fans for this use-case by identifying pros and cons, and which system is ideal. 

How to Cool Interior Climates

The two primary methods of cooling structures are air conditioning systems and evaporative cooling via fans. While both do in fact utilize evaporation as a key component of their processes, they are separate and distinct:

Air Conditioning

Air conditioning is a process where equipment runs a refrigerant cycle to transfer heat from indoors to outdoors. Within the system, the refrigerant inside an evaporator coil absorbs heat from the building’s air that causes it to evaporate into its gas phase. The now gaseous refrigerant is moved to a compressor in the outdoor unit which increases the gas’s pressure and temperature so that it flows into the condenser coil. 

Finally, a fan blows air over the condenser coil to release the refrigerant’s heat to the outside environment and subsequently condense it back into its liquid state to be returned to the evaporator coil to begin the cycle again.

Evaporative Cooling

Evaporative cooling, in principle, is similar to the process of air conditioning, but the components and mechanisms are different, and actually well known to us as our bodies do it naturally via perspiration. When our bodies become hot, sweat forms on our skin so that a flow of air can initiate evaporation to remove the heat from our skin and cool the blood near the surface that can then circulate throughout the body and provide overall cooling. 

This is why a cool breeze on a hot day is so refreshing, and also why fans have been so vital across history. The simple flow of air over the skin can provide powerful cooling.

This same effect is utilized in evaporative coolers, commonly known as swamp coolers, where a moist pad wicks water up from a reservoir and a fan then blows across the pad to cool the air by absorbing its heat.

Air Conditioners vs. Industrial Fans in Industrial Facilities

When it comes to providing cooling relief in large structures like warehouses, manufacturing facilities, garages, hangars, and the like, these two processes are competing solutions. Let’s take a look at their pros and cons:

Air Conditioner Pros and Cons

Pros

• They are able to condition air so that desired temperatures are attained no matter the external humidity levels and temperature.
• They are capable of removing humidity from interiors - a distinct advantage for humid and/or rainy climates.
• As well as conditioning air for temperature control, air conditioning systems are built with filters to keep air fresh as it circulates.

Cons

• Air conditioners aren’t cheap, they are cost-effective enough to be utilized for residential and office situations where room volumes are small. When it comes to massive structures like warehouses and manufacturing facilities, the cost of systems necessary to provide effective cooling is extreme.
• The more equipment there is, the more maintenance is required to keep them running.
• Air conditioning systems require a significant amount of energy to run, which can cut deep into facility budget’s as well as contributing to more carbon emissions.

Industrial Fan Pros and Cons

Pros

• Taking advantage of the evaporative cooling effect, industrial fans provide cooling simply by creating a flow of air. This translates to less equipment: fan blades spun by a motor.
• Because there is far less complicated equipment, there are far less energy requirements, which makes industrial fans highly energy efficient and economical.
• They are excellent for dry climates because the evaporative cooling process adds moisture to the interior climate.
• Modern industrial fans like HVLS fans with massive blade diameters are capable of moving large volumes of air, which translates to cooling abilities for massive structures at low cost.

Cons

• Their ability to cool large volumes is powerful vs. no fan, but not nearly as powerful as air conditioning.
• Industrial fans can be less effective in highly humid environments because there is already so much moisture in the air which limits the evaporative cooling effect.

Applications Where Air Conditioners Are Not Feasible

Due to their pros and cons, air conditioners are often utilized in residential settings but rarely in commercial settings within large, warehouse-type structures. The systems required to cool such large spaces are simply unfeasible, and not only when it comes to acquiring the equipment. The energy required to power the equipment is an added expense that mounts as temperatures rise. Add in the cost of maintenance to keep such systems running smoothly and quickly the benefits disappear.

The good news for such facilities is that climate control needs aren’t as severe as in residential and smaller commercial settings. For example, if the temperature is 100 degrees outside, a warehouse doesn’t need to be a strict 70 degrees to provide significant climate control. Air flow from powerful industrial fans will dramatically cool personnel, equipment, and maintain a more agreeable interior climate for the storage of goods, and done at low costs thanks to the simplicity of industrial fans as compared to air conditioning systems and the low amount of energy required to run them.

How Industrial Fans Provide Cooling at Low Cost

It may seem like a gargantuan array of industrial fans are required to cool massive structures, but modern technology has optimized the cooling effect provided by fans by improving their design. In particular, high volume, low speed (HVLS) industrial fans utilize massive blade diameters to move huge amounts of air all while turning at low speeds. If you’ve ever seen modern windmills manufactured for energy creation, you’ll notice that they don’t tend to spin very fast. That is because of how big their blades are. 

The same concept applies to HVLS fans where large blades only need to spin at low speeds to push significant amounts of air to provide the evaporative cooling effect to facility workers. This airflow also keeps air fresh and clean, a major aid to any ventilation system.

Still Need A/C? Consider a Warehouse Cooling System

Even with the fantastic option of industrial fans, some warehouse and commercial structures require additional cooling. In this event, modern warehouse cooling systems are designed to be as energy and cost efficient as possible to achieve goals without overrunning operational costs.

Beat the Heat with Industrial Fans and Warehouse Cooling Systems from TBC Supply

No matter your application, there are highly-engineered, modern industrial fans ready to provide the powerful cooling, air flow, and ventilation that is necessary to craft a comfortable environment to optimize worker efficiency, keep stored goods, and lessen equipment degradation due to extreme climate conditions. 

At TBC Supply, we work tirelessly to identify and provide solutions to our customers, whether with fans or modern, efficient warehouse cooling systems.