BLDC Ceiling Fan vs Normal Fan | Which is Better?

With electricity tariffs increasing almost throughout India, people want to save energy by using energy-efficient electrical products. That explains why inverter technology has become popular.

As a result, consumers purchase ACs and refrigerators that work on inverter technology. Though expensive initially, products working on inverter technology are economical because they save power.

Similarly, BLDC ceiling fans are in great demand today, with brands like Havells, Atomberg, Crompton, and others using BLDC technology in their latest models.

What is BLDC technology, and how do BLDC ceiling fans differ from regular ceiling fans? What are the pluses and minuses of using BLDC technology? This article discusses these aspects in detail.

Before comparing BLDC ceiling fans with regular ceiling fans, let us understand how BLDC fans work.

What is BLDC?

BLDC stands for Brushless Direct Current. BLDC ceiling fans have got this name because they work with BLDC motors. As the name suggests, BLDC motors work on direct current. While induction motors use electromagnets, BLDC motors contain permanent magnets.

The use of permanent magnets causes less heat loss and energy than electromagnets. A BLDC motor works by converting alternating current into direct current. Thus it saves power, like how inverter technology works in ACs and refrigerators.

How does the BLDC Motor work?

A BLDC motor does not use brushes between the rotor and stator. Hence, these motors are referred to as brushless DC motors. In addition, the BLDC motor ceiling fan uses a permanent magnet in the rotor, whereas the copper winding in the stator produces magnetic flux after the electric supply.

When the magnets on the rotor and stator have similar polarities, the magnetic force pushes the rotor to rotate. The BLDC ceiling fan motor has an electronic drive that ensures continuous changes in the polarities in the stator to maintain the rotation.

The BLDC Drive comprises four components.

• The SMPS converts the alternating current into a direct current.
• The microcontroller receives the data from the remote control and provides output data to the inverter.
• The inverter receives the signals from the microcontroller and transfers them to the motor.
• Finally, the motor works to maintain the rotation.

How does the BLDC ceiling fan differ from the standard ceiling fan?

The ordinary ceiling fan has two primary components, the stator, and the rotor. The stator and rotor have copper windings. The current flowing through the stator winding generates an electric flux. First, it creates a magnetic field to make a rotational moment. Next, the electric current conducting through the coils in the rotor causes the motor to move.

The standard ceiling fan speed is controlled using a regulator of two types.

• The resistance-based regulator varies the resistance to adjust the voltage supplied to the fan.
• The modern regulator works as an on/off device that constantly reduces the voltage to determine the fan speed accordingly.

The BLDC fan works differently because it uses permanent magnets instead of a magnetic field. It uses the commutation method to change the current direction in the motor and cause the motor to rotate. Instead of brushes, the BLDC motor uses an electronic drive. Besides reducing heat generation, the BLDC motor saves power. Therefore, BLDC ceiling fans are more highly energy-efficient than normal ceiling fans.

Advantages of BLDC ceiling fans

• Since BLDC ceiling fans work on direct current, they consume less electricity. Brushless DC motors reduce power consumption by 65%. In contrast, the standard ceiling fans work on AC.
• BLDC windings are made of copper to ensure better durability with low winding issues. Thus, the fans do not get overheated.
• The absence of brushes between the rotor and stator in BLDC fan motors reduces the maintenance costs of replacing brushes.
• BLDC motors are renowned for their high torque. Hence, they deliver better quality performance than normal ceiling fans.
• Since the BLDC fans do not have brushes, there is no friction. Therefore, BLDC fans make less noise, whereas the carbon brushes in a standard induction motor create more noise.
• The BLDC ceiling fan has electronic components compared to regular ceiling fans that have mechanical parts. Therefore, BLDC ceiling fans undergo less wear and tear.

Disadvantages of BLDC fans

• The electronic component setup in BLDC ceiling fans makes them more expensive than normal ceiling fans with inexpensive mechanical systems.
• The BLDC ceiling fans produce vibrations at low voltage to cause a resonance effect. However, this problem is adjustable.
• As BLDC technology is comparatively modern, you need experienced technicians to install BLDC ceiling fans.
• Compared to the standard induction motors, a BLDC motor has complicated wiring because of the electronic control unit that links to electromagnets.

How much money can a BLDC fan save in a year?

Our ceiling fan power consumption calculator can help determine how much power a BLDC fan can save in a year.

Let us take a real-life example and compare the power consumption of two popular ceiling fans. We have taken the data from the original instruction manuals of these fans.

The fans work 12 hours a day, and the electricity tariff in your area is Rs 7 per unit.

While the cost of both these fans is similar, the power consumption varies significantly. You can see that the BLDC ceiling fan consumes around 60% less power than the standard ceiling fan. The annual savings is around Rs 1,500, whereas there is not much difference in the fan’s pricing.

Performance Comparison

BLDC ceiling fans perform better than regular ceiling fans by delivering better air quality and less noise. This comparison between the Havells Festiva and Atomberg Renesa BLDC should explain things better.

Conclusion

We have compared the working of a BLDC ceiling fan with a normal ceiling and understood how BLDC ceiling fans save power. The overall performance is otherwise comparable. However, the power savings make these BLDC fans more popular today than standard ceiling fans.