What does efficiency mean? In the HVAC industry, efficiency means energy consumption in relation to cooling or heating power. An efficiently running air conditioner or heater will run while consuming as little energy as possible. This term is important because it signals the need to keep operating costs low and gives homeowners a clear idea of how much a specific type of AC unit or heater will cost to run.
What many contractors don’t tell homeowners is that there are additional ways to increase efficiency and lower the energy consumption of HVAC systems. These aren’t things that anyone needs to purchase, they’re just simple behavioral changes. While we go into detail about these nifty efficiency tips, make sure to call our team for air conditioning repair in New Rochelle if an air conditioner starts consuming more energy than it should.
Save Energy: Save Money
The key to efficiency is that any trick that will make the job easier on an air conditioner or cool a home with minimal energy consumption will inevitably save money. That’s just how efficiency works. So, in light of trying to reduce energy consumption, what we’re really saying is that homeowners can save money by following these few tips. Pay attention!
Run a Ceiling Fan
When it’s hot out, and we mean really hot out, an air conditioner will seldom be able to cool a home off to less than 20 degrees cooler than the outdoor temperature. An air conditioner is not a refrigerator. It’s meant to keep homes reasonably cool, which includes a lot more space than a refrigerator might. That being said, ceiling fans are incredibly effective ways to cool a home down a few more degrees while consuming little energy to do so. They make the job easier on an air conditioner and make a home noticeably comfier!
Use Blinds and Curtains
The sun is a great big ball of incandescent gas, so of course it’s going to create heat everywhere its light goes. That includes the space next to any beautiful windows in a home! So, to combat this problem and help lower the stress on an air conditioner, it’s a good idea to draw curtains or blinds where there’s a lot of sunlight on a hot day. This can reduce the amount of heat entering a home and increase the efficiency of an AC system.
Schedule AC Maintenance
So many homeowners live under the notion that air conditioner maintenance is an optional service. They think of it like dog grooming or getting rims for a car, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Air conditioner maintenance is necessary if any homeowners want their system to last anywhere near the 10-15 year mark of old age. Not only that, but it’s assumed that each year a system goes without maintenance, it loses 5% of its efficiency. That means there can be dramatic drops in efficiency, cooling power, and spikes in energy bills.
Take a look at our maintenance program and give us a call. We promise that it’s the best way to increase efficiency and keep an AC in good shape throughout the summer.
Call the pros at Yost & Campbell Heating, Cooling & Generators for expert AC advice.