Your air conditioner provides comfort when the heat outside is unbearable. However, using your cooling system day in and day out can take a toll on your wallet. In fact, air conditioners usually account for a significant portion of home energy costs.
Although your family’s safety is important, and you should keep cool when the sun is blazing, paying for high energy bills can feel burdensome. Fortunately, there are easy, no-cost ways to improve air conditioning efficiency. These simple methods can enhance your family’s comfort and save you money at the same time.
Are you ready to boost your air conditioner’s energy efficiency? Let’s go over some easy tips you can try.
Close the Blinds and Curtains
Since we’re discussing no-cost ways to improve air conditioning efficiency, it only makes sense to start with the simplest tips. One of the easiest and most convenient is to close your curtains and blinds during the middle of the day.
Preventing the sun from shining through your windows will help keep your home cool. When your home is cooler, the air conditioning system won’t have to work as hard to reach the desired temperature. You’ll waste less energy when your air conditioner can run smoothly without working overtime. As a result, you can potentially see savings on your utility bills.
Seal Potential Air Leaks
Warm air from outside could be seeping into your home through window and door leaks without you even noticing! If you think you could be experiencing this problem, perform a quick inspection of your home and seal leaks with weather stripping.
Although we’re discussing air conditioner efficiency tips, it’s important to note that some of these methods simply involve using common sense. For example, you’ll want to keep windows and doors closed whenever possible. Performing this humble task will keep the warm air out of your house and the cool air in.
Keep the Outdoor Unit Clean
There are many no-cost ways to improve air conditioning efficiency from inside your home. Despite this, you shouldn’t forget to look outside as well. Every once in a while, you’ll want to thoroughly inspect your air conditioner’s outdoor unit (sometimes referred to as the condenser unit).
When you inspect the unit, you might find it covered in dirt and debris. Some types of debris can include leaves, small twigs, and grass. Fortunately, cleaning these outdoor units is a fairly easy process. You can remove larger debris with your hands and wash the condenser fins with a garden hose with gentle pressure. If your outdoor unit is corroded be very careful that you do not put too much water pressure as this can cause damage.
It’s important to care for your HVAC system to keep it running as efficiently as possible. For instance, replacing the air filter is one of the most beneficial air conditioner efficiency tips. Dirty air filters can negatively affect your unit’s performance and may potentially lead to you scheduling an air conditioner replacement sooner than later.
Avoid Using Heat-Producing Appliances
Does your home tend to get excessively hot when you use your oven, stove, or dryer? Many large appliances such as these produce heat and can add to the uncomfortable temperature inside your home. Not to mention, these appliances could make it difficult for your air conditioner to properly do its job. Your AC might have to work extra hard to meet your cooling requirements — and could be wasting a great deal of energy in the process.
Although it’s not the most ideal, one of our top air conditioner efficiency tips is to avoid using heat-producing appliances when temperatures are unbearably high. Keeping these appliances off can potentially boost the efficiency of air conditioning units since the cooling systems don’t have to fight back against an extra source of heat inside your home.
Adjust the Thermostat Setting
Increasing your thermostat’s temperature by a few degrees can help you save energy and lower utility costs. Ideally, you’ll want to adjust the thermostat by five to eight degrees. If you’re worried that this adjustment will ruin your comfort, we recommend running the ceiling fans throughout your home at the same time as your air conditioner.
Although ceiling fans don’t actually create cold air, they create what is known as a “wind-chill effect.” When a fan creates a breeze, this air will blow across your skin and make you feel cooler.
Keep Your Air Conditioner Running Efficiently With Polar Bear
The central air conditioning system in your home is crucial to your family’s comfort. Fortunately, there are many air conditioner efficiency tips that can help you keep cool while wasting less energy and saving money.
However, you don’t have to do all of the work yourself. Polar Bear offers AC repair services and annual maintenance to ensure your cooling system is running as smoothly as possible. Give us a call today!
0 Comments