10 Useful Tips to Save Energy While Using Air Conditioning
For most people who own air conditioners, getting their electricity bill at the end of the month is almost always a nerve-wracking experience.
Seeing the exorbitant quantity of money owed due to energy expenditure from the air conditioner, especially during hot seasons, may be a dreadful experience.
Thankfully, you no longer have to experience that scary adventure .
In this particular post, we will explain how you can save money on air conditioning by giving you the top air conditioning tips to save energy you can try right now.
Even though a number of these tips are completely free, others can cost you a little bit of money upfront; however, we guarantee that you'll save more money in the long run with these solutions.
So, let's get into it.
The Top Air Conditioning Tips to Save Energy
- Use a Portable Air Conditioner
If you're looking to save energy using an air conditioner, one of the first things that you ought to consider is supplementing your whole-house cooling system using a portable air conditioning unit.
Portable air conditioners are an excellent way to cool specific rooms of your house that you frequent most.
Because of how portable air conditioners work, the majority of these machines use about one-eighth of the energy in comparison to some central air conditioner unit. (Some products utilize even less than this.)
While the upfront cost to get a portable AC unit may be an initial deterrent for you , the upside is that these appliances will keep you cool for a little as $10 per month. That’s much cheaper than $100-200 for a whole-house air conditioner and the savings really add up over the long-term.
If this sounds attractive to you, we have two free guides for you to check out:
- Our top portable air conditioner reviews (with the best of the best)
- Our cheap portable air conditioner reviews (together with the lowest-cost options)
- Both of these guides can help you discover the ideal portable AC unit for your needs.
- Use a Windows Air Conditioner
Exactly like portable air conditioners, the significant benefit of using windows air conditioners is they don't use as much energy as central air conditioners--about $10 or more per month.
The other benefit is you may find a high-quality window AC unit for substantially cheaper than a portable model – about $150 or so.
If you would like to explore this alternative, have a look at our reviews of the best rated window air conditioner options available or your home.
- Growing The Temperature On Your Thermostat
When it comes to executing air conditioning tips to conserve energy, among the best practices that you could do is to raise the temperature on your thermostat.
Keeping your thermostat 10 to 15 levels higher than you would normally have it, to get a total of 8 hours throughout the day, can actually lower your energy bill by 10 percent every year. The U.S. Department of Energy even suggests keeping your thermostat at 78°F (26°C) when you're house to save the most money on your air conditioning.
By the way, this tip applies to any type of air conditioner you have: whole-house central AC unit, window AC units, and portable AC units.
- Replace the HVAC Air Filters
Dirty and clogged air filters around the HVAC system make it to work hard and use more energy.
If you want a cheap and effortless way for how to spend less on air conditioning, replace your air filters every 3 months (at a minimum.)
- Reduce Solar Heat Input
The warmth generated from the Sun plays a massive role in how hard the air conditioner has to work in order to keep your house cool.
For this reason, you should try and reduce the total amount of heat that enters your home by ensuring that you block all its potential entrances.
What we're referring to here is keeping your blinds closed, pulling your curtains together, shutting your windows, and anything else you can do in order to prevent solar heat from coming inside.
If you prefer to have the sun stream in during the day, you may want to think about employing window tint to your windows so the inside doesn't heat up as much.
- Dry Clothes at the Right Time of Day
Clothing dryers can discharge a lot of warmth around them, which can cause the ambient temperatures to rise and cause your air conditioner to operate.
The best tip here is to use your dryer only in the early morning or evening hours when the overall house temperature has chilled.
- Turn Off Devices Which Generate Heat Inside Your Home
There are many devices inside your own home that generate heat (e.g. lights, computers, toaster, kitchen oven) and they all may have a negative influence on how well your air conditioner works when it comes to cooling your home.
While you might not be able to turn off each single heat-generating device in your home (e.g. refrigerator), there might be a way which you are able to reduce how much electricity some of these consume.
Something as simple as turning off the lights if they are not required or powering down your computer when not in use can lower the amount of internal heat that is emitted.
A little step like this can allow your air conditioner to work more efficiently and reduce its energy consumption.
- Open (Or Close) Rooms Not In Use
Although this tip can help you save energy on air conditioning, then it has to be applied correctly based on the type of air conditioner you use.
If you are only having a central air conditioner, then leave all the interior doors open. This permits cold air to flow more freely throughout the house. Additionally, it lowers stress on the AC unit.
If you’re using a window or portable air conditioner (recommended above), then close all of the doors to rooms that are not in use. This way you may maintain as much cold air as possible within the room you're in. Or, if you want to permit that air to travel, it is possible to direct the flow of the cold air by maintaining surrounding rooms closed.
- Eliminate Humidity
One of the largest culprits behind your air conditioner’s high energy expenditure might be due to the high levels of humidity inside your property.
If there is excessive humidity in your house, your cooling appliance must work harder to cool it; something which can cause your device to be much less efficient.
Purchasing a dehumidifier is a superb method to decrease the total amount of humidity in your house and cut back on the total amount of energy that your AC unit uses.
You can get a humidifier for as little as $50 or cover up to $400 or more. The size you need really just depends on how poor the humidity is inside your home. A cheap hygrometer will tell you how high the relative humidity (RH) is. Aim for 40-50% RH.
Monthly Prices to get a dehumidifier are between $15-35 with an average of 6-10cents per hour of operation.
- Install Ceiling Fans
Ceiling fans are a terrific compliment to air conditioners in the feeling that they help in circulating air throughout your home.
These fans are also relatively cheap investments that will have a lasting positive impact on your ability to conserve energy.
And while ceiling fans do consume electricity, their energy intake is so low that you can expect to pay about $1 a month to use them. In other words, unless you keep a ceiling fan on all day, every day. Then it may cost you around $10 per month.
- Wrap Up On How to Spend Less On Air Conditioning
We hope you enjoyed these suggestions on how to save money on air conditioning.
Trying to include some or all these air conditioning tips to save energy in your everyday routine will not just help you keep more cash in your pocket, but you'll also notice an improvement in your air conditioner's overall performance.
And a better performing air purifier requires significantly less maintenance and Repairs on the long-term that helps you save more money.
Preferred Climate Solutions is owned and operated by HVAC veterans. We have over 17 years experience with portable heating and cooling systems, plus a lifetime of experience with Texas’ challenging climate. We provide an array of portable cooling and heating rental solutions 24/7. We have locations in Houston, Dallas/Ft Worth & Austin Texas. Though Houston is our home, we offer on-site delivery and setup anywhere in the state of Texas. Though Houston is our home, we offer on-site delivery and setup anywhere in the state of Texas. Call us anytime and we are ready to help you.