Using your air-conditioner efficiently during summer heat!
By Greg Horan on July 16, 2012, 7:47pm
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During the hot weather season, you will likely be cranking up your air-conditioner to remain comfortable. There are some things to keep in mind before you do so.
Typically, if you use central air, you probably set it at a specific temperature and leave it on for the whole summer season. You might think that it makes more sense to keep the temperature constant versus turning it on or off throughout the day.
Upon doing some research, I found out that turning your central air-conditioning off when you're not home and then turning it on when you return will keep it running more efficiently and save you more money! However at really high temperatures, if you come back from work at 5pm it may take all evening before it will be comfortable and the air cools back down.
So your best bet is to use a programmable thermostat and set it around 78 to 80 degrees when you're not home, allowing it to run much less frequently. Then upon returning, drop it down a few degrees.
Another thing you may have not realized is that your air-conditioners are only designed to keep your house about 15 to 20 degrees lower than the outside temperature! So if it's 100 out you really cannot expect to keep the inside much lower than 80 degrees.
If it's 80 degrees in your house, keep any ceiling fans turned on and you will feel more comfortable! When the temperature drops down in the evening, your house will also cool down. Also, most units have an auto or fan setting. It makes sense to keep it on auto because leaving it on fan can actually increase humidity by bringing up moisture from the condenser. This, in return, will cause an increase in your electricity costs, so use your ceiling fan instead to recirculate air!
Other factors to keep in mind are to make sure your blinds or shades are closed during the day to keep out the sun and make sure your unit outside is also shaded from direct sunlight!
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