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Tips for Using Your Air Conditioner More Efficiently
Admin • Dec 10, 2019
Likely no one wants to see a large utility bill. However, no one wants to sit at home sweating. And if you have infants or elderly persons in your home, overheating can be a major issue. So, you might think you're relegated to the first issue of high AC costs. However, you might not run your air conditioner as efficiently as possible. Keep reading for some tips to that end.
Seal Your Home
First of all, never run the air conditioner with a window open. Before you run the AC, do a quick walk-around to ensure no windows are even cracked. Trying to cool the entire block will definitely lead to high utility bills.
However, even if your windows are closed, your home might not have proper sealing. Over time, the weather stripping on windows and doors becomes old and starts to crumble. If you think this might be the case, you could hire AC specialists for a home audit. You can also go around and examine all the weather stripping yourself.
If you believe you’ve let in cold air out from leaks, invest in new weather stripping. Look for the kind that resembles the gasket style in your car as it's the most efficient. Likewise, consider adding some insulation around the doors.
Ventilate Your Home
Keep your house sealed — until you need some ventilation. If you experience cool nights in your area, don't be afraid to turn off the air conditioner at night and open up your windows. You could even set a box fan in front of the window to further draw in cool air. Running a fan will often be cheaper than running the AC all night, every night.
In that vein, consider running your ceiling fans at any time of day. When you run the air conditioner, the ceiling fans will circulate the cool air. Therefore, you might be able to reduce how much cool air you need from the unit. At night, the ceiling fan can help circulate the cool air from your open window.
Keep the Filter Clean
Air conditioner filters have an important job. They filter out dust, dander, and debris that the AC unit sucks up while circulating air. When dust, dander, and debris get through to your home, they can cause respiratory problems. They can also make your home harder to clean since the dirtiness literally circulates in the air.
Besides letting the bad stuff into your home, a dirty filter also makes the air conditioner run harder. The blower fan has to work harder to circulate the cool air. Obviously, when the unit works harder, it requires more power, which translates to higher utilities again. Replace your air filter at least seasonally, though monthly is better during high-use times.
Service Your Unit
Your AC unit has a lot of components. It consists of the condenser unit on the outside and the blower on the inside. Within both those units are many moving parts. Those moving parts are susceptible to wearing out and even breaking. They also just get dirty. When those events happen, your AC unit stops running efficiently and sometimes stops running altogether.
When something breaks inside your air conditioning system, you often face a costly repair. A far less costly option is to service your unit on a yearly basis. You can call in the HVAC specialists to have them go over all the components of your AC system. They can catch when any of the parts have worn out and repair or replace them before they cause a more costly problem.
You can also have them clean your unit. They can remove the debris from the condenser unit casing and clean the fins. They could also clean and lubricate any moving parts.
Don't throw your money away on high cooling bills. Instead, run your AC unit at maximum efficiency. For any air conditioning services or sales, contact Weather Control Air
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