Air Conditioner Energy Saving Tips and Advice

Reducing Summer Power Bills

Summer means hot, if not too hot. The air conditioner is probably the most used appliance during this season. One important factor in reducing air conditioning costs is to control the amount of heat generated within the home or apartment during the afternoon, when temperature is at its highest.

• Reduce activities requiring a great deal of going through the doors of your home during the afternoon. This contributes to the intrusion of hot air, replacing the cool air that had escaped.
• Use blinds, curtains, or awnings, to block direct sunlight. In effect, your house will become cooler.
• Turn the lights off when rooms are not in use. The light is considered as a major factor in generating heat that makes your air conditioner run an excessively.
• Use microwave ovens; they produce lesser heat than stove when cooking. Try doing house chores during the morning or later in the evening.

More Efficient Air Conditioning:

Adjusting the thermostat is one way of reducing your air conditioner cost. Your savings will be valuable when you set your thermostat at 78 degrees. For every degree raise in thermostat, it significantly reduces seasonal costs by 6 to 8 percent.

• When your temperature is set to a little higher around 78 to 80 degrees, it will save you up to 6 to 8 percent of your cooling costs for each degree above 78. Most people will be comfortable with this temperature.
• Portable and ceiling fans can be alternatives to air conditioners. Setting it to three or four degrees cooler (which only costs a half-cent per hour to operate) can save on cooling costs.
• Since fans cool people and not rooms, occupy the rooms where the air conditioner is on.
• When you leave your home, make sure to turn off the air conditioner or set the thermostat up a few degrees.
• Try using evaporative air coolers for pet areas or hot areas of the house, instead of turning the thermostat down. Air coolers cost less than 10 cents each day to operate.
• Air conditioner should not be blocked. When the air condition is flowing free it operates most efficiently. Be sure that it is not blocked by items like furniture inside your house. The filters should always be checked monthly.
• Keep the doors and windows closed when the air conditioner is on. Switch off the kitchen or bathroom exhaust fans when the air conditioner is operating.
• Weather-strip leaky windows and doors.
• Provide a shade to avoid direct sunlight. Make use of shades, drapes, awnings, trees and shrubs to block the hot sun from heating up your home.
• Proper cooling of the unit must be checked. If it does not operate well, it can cause extremely high bills.
• Compensate with temperature settings, hours of operation and filter condition when your air conditioning equipment is older and less efficient.

Biggest Money Saving Improvements

• Old air conditioners should be replaced by high efficient units. New air conditioners use up to 40 percent less electricity than older models.
• Leaks in ductwork in your attic should be sealed. The average home loses 15 to 25 percent of cooling and heating through leaking ducts.
• Replace R-30 in your attic insulation. The average 15-year old home has between R-11 and R-15.
• Try installing solar screens or awnings on windows hit by direct sunlight. Solar screens reflect back 60 to 70 percent of sunlight/heat before it can enter the house.

Air conditioning maintenance is very crucial in order to avoid paying high energy bills. It is enjoyable to use air conditioners to beat the summer heat, in the same time, reducing some of the energy your air conditioner is utilizing.

• When out in the room, lower or better turn off the air conditioner.
• Always replace and clean air conditioner filters once a month to retain energy efficiency.
• To either promote circulation of air or fresh breezes in the room, try mounting ceiling fan.
• As much as possible, clean the duct regularly.
• During spring, let your air conditioning system be checked by a utility company.
• Put some sunshade, blinds or awnings over the windows during daytime to block the sunlight and heat.
• Place some plants or plant tress to serve as a shade for the window from direct sunlight.
• Try putting a light-colored exterior instead of dark color. Dark shade usually absorbs 70 to 90 percent of the sun’s energy.
• Compensate a typical window pane with coated window to reduce heat and bright light from the window.
• Try to shade a room air conditioner with an AC unit cover ($10 to $30) to reduce the chances of burn-out from the sun.
• Put a reflective coating on the roof.
• Make sure that your basement, attic and windows are insulated properly.
• Make sure to close all heating pipes and holes around plumbing.
• Significantly insulate leaky ducts by professional seal.