The heat of summer means running your AC full time to create a comfortable escape from the South Florida heat and humidity. Keeping your home cool can be pricey, but with proper use of your energy efficient AC unit and some simple tips for management, you can reduce your energy bills and still live in an ideal temperature. Here are some simple tips to help keep more money in your wallet this summer.
Programmable Thermostat
By installing a programmable thermostat, you can set your AC to only be running when you are home. When the kids are at school and you’re at work, there is no reason to have the air running and cooling it for no one. For a one time cost and a quick install, you will be able to set multiple cycles and depending upon the model you choose even different cycles for each day of the week depending on your family’s schedule.
Set it Higher
Setting your temperature slightly higher but still tolerable will ultimately help save money. But when you leave a room for more than an hour, set the thermostat up to 85 or 90, because it’ll only take 10-15 minutes or so to cool back down when you reenter and takes less energy to cool back down than to keep it running the whole time.
Fans, Fans, Fans
Fans can be a great addition to your home cooling systems because they cost pennies an hour to operate and when used in conjunction with air conditioners they move around the drier air and can
make a room feel about 5 degrees cooler. Adding a motion sensor to turn the fan on when you’re in the room can add a marginal benefit as well, just depending how far you want to take your efficiency.
Sunblockers
Installing sun blocking shades to your west-facing windows can prevent a significant amount of heat from entering your home, thus putting less pressure on your AC to cool down the heated air.
Get Your Ducts Checked
It can be very beneficial to have your HVAC professional check all your duct work that could be leaking and losing very valuable conditioned air and money.
If you’re looking for an HVAC professional, contact Chills Air Conditioning of Miami and Sarasota or visit them online at www.chillsairconditioning.com.
