In improperly installed or poorly maintained ceiling fan may become more ornamental than useful.  You may have selected your kitchen, bedroom, or living room fan based on appearance, choosing it for blade design or lighting options. But unless you’re just going to turn it on when company comes, you should make sure that your fan is not costing you more to operate than the potential energy savings it can bring to your home.

Let’s say you’ve included quotes for having a fan installed when renovating a bathroom. According to Home Energy Magazine,  a standard ceiling fan with a light fixture uses about 300 kwh/year to operate, while a certified Energy Star model fan uses less than half of that amount without compromising light and airflow capabilities. Makes sense to help distribute your HVAC load with an appliance that also runs efficiently.

Do You Need Lighting in the Ceiling Fan?
If your main reason is to curb heating or air conditioning costs, you may not need to buy a ceiling fan with a central light. It’s the light itself that draws the most power during operation and it generates heat.  Halogen and  incandescent bulbs typically use the greatest amount of energy.

The government’s Energy Star website provides downloads of tools to help you select the most energy-efficient fan based on the size of your kitchen or bathroom, on your regional heating and cooling requirements, along with installation tips. The agency also has suggestions in choosing the correct fan mounting system for your room: standard, extended, sloped, or flush mounts.

Fan Adjustments: Working Out the Wobble
There’s nothing glamorous about a wobbly fan. The noise or visual flutter in the spin can drive you to distraction. Worse, a wobbly fan can have a shorter effective life as well as use additional energy to run without providing circulation.

If you’re installing the fan in your bathroom or kitchen–or having someone do it for you–be sure the unit is fastened securely to a mounting box in the ceiling. This is a pivotal part of the procedure.  Most manufacturers balance the fan blades before shipping, but there’s no guarantee your unit will come that way.

A good method of diagnosing the fan is to run it without the blades installed to see if it still wobbles. If it runs smooth, you’ll need to balance the blades. Be sure to  ensure that all the set screws and mounting screws are tight. Then measure the distance from the top of each blade to the ceiling. Adjust each blade as necessary until all of them are true and even.

It’s time to revisit the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and its energy improvements section.  In sum, Section 1121 of the act was created to offer a $1,500 tax credit for materials applied towards an energy retrofit of windows, skylights, doors, insulation and roofing.

Homeowners can earn the credit up to a 30 percent ceiling on materials. However, if you’re working with heating and air conditioning, you could receive a credit up to 30 percent of the cost and installation for a solar- powered water heater or biomass stove.  Another provision of the legislation creates a no-repay $8,000 tax credit to a first-time homeowner.

Tax Rules and a Quick Warning
The provisions of the stimulus  tripled the size of credits for upgrading your home. But you must meet Federal requirements to successfully file for the credit or return. All new HVAC systems or new windows, skylights, doors, etc., have to be installed between  January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2010.

If you’re planning on taking the credit, you must buy products that meet Federal energy efficiency requirements. Even a product identified on its label as an Energy Star certified item may not meet the regulations. New compliance levels have been set based on National Fenestration Council (NFRC) ratings for  U-Factor and Solar Heat-Gain-Coefficient values.

There are varieties of insulation products that meet lifespan and warranty requirements that you can add to your materials checklist. And roofing materials that meet Energy Star requirements may also qualify.

Insist on Paper
For each purchase you want to apply to your tax return, you’ll need the receipt, the product tag verifying its energy-efficiency ratings (Manufacturer’s Certification Statement), and a separate form provided by the retailer indicating the sale of an qualifying item.

Don’t confuse your contractor with your tax attorney. Look carefully at advertising from contractors who claim that they’ll match your $1,500 tax credit.  That’s assuming that you can qualify for one.  Remember, only certain energy-efficient renovations qualify for tax credits and include labor costs. Review the list at the Energy Star website.

Also, don’t take a contractor’s word that the materials meet the provisions unless you see the actual manufacturer’s certification tag. Any contract or work-order you arrange with your installer should itemize materials costs in a separate breakout from labor. You’ll need to save all the documentation you can for your records.

It’s worth a note that the law also set aside $5 billion in funds for weatherization assistance to qualified low-income households.