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jul 16

Summer’s a Scorcher. Learn How to Cool Off Efficiently

It's too hot to move and even sitting still makes you perspire. But blasting the A/C is a pricey proposition. The good news is that there are ways to chill that lower your energy bill.

There are plenty of ways to use your air conditioning more effectively.

Air conditioning a house with open shades or blinds in the hot sun is a losing battle. When it's hot and sunny out, shade the windows of your house -- especially on the south, east and west sides. That way, your house won't bake while your air conditioner is on overdrive trying to cool it down.

If possible, locate your air-conditioning unit in a shady spot instead of in the sun. A shaded air conditioner can be 10% more efficient than one in the sun.

Set the timer on your air conditioner so you're not cooling an empty house while everyone is at work or school.

You may have thought that air conditioners are a replacement for fans, but the two can work hand-in-hand. Place fans around your home or install ceiling fans and you can comfortably raise the thermostat a few degrees. In the summer, the breeze of a counter-clockwise fan will make you feel cooler and in the winter the direction of the fan can be changed to clockwise to efficiently circulate warm air. Remember to turn off fans in empty rooms, fans makes you feel cooler but don't lower the temperature of the room.

Can't remember the last time your central air system got a tune-up? It's probably time for some maintenance. Clean the air filters every month and clean the air conditioner coils every year. Also, be sure to check the system's refrigerant every two years. Low levels of refrigerant mean the system isn't performing as efficiently as it could.

Or maybe it's time to replace your old, clunky A/C unit with a more efficient Energy Star air conditioner. If everyone with a room air conditioner in the U.S. switched to Energy Star, they would prevent 1.2 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions -- the equivalent emissions from 100,000 cars -- from entering the atmosphere. The Energy Star website provides helpful guidelines on purchasing the right air conditioner based on the square footage of space you need to keep cool

When buying a new air conditioner, look for a unit with a slide-out filter that is easy to clean regularly. Think about choosing a unit that has controls such as a digital thermostat and a built-in timer. With a timer, you can set the unit to begin cooling an hour before you return home from work instead of wasting energy running your air conditioner when no one's home.

And of course, choose a thermostat temperature that makes you feel comfortable in shorts and a t-shirt, not a sweater.


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  • To keep your home cool in the summer, close the blinds and shades during the day to try to keep the cool air in and the hot sun out.
  • Clean your air conditioner's filter and condenser coils every month and schedule an annual check-up with an air conditioner repair service for your A/C system. Well-maintained systems operate better and use less energy.
  • Install ceiling fans in the rooms you use most often and raise the thermostat a few degrees. In the summer the breeze will cool you, in the winter they'll circulate rising warm air.



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