The federal Department of Energy (DOE) reports that at least half the energy you use in your home likely goes toward cooling and heating it. Fortunately, it’s not hard to realize energy savings. Tending to your equipment and addressing your home’s insulation and air filtration will cut those energy costs without incurring a lot of expense.
These tips will help you manage your comfort and lower your energy bills this summer.
- If you’ve covered the outdoor condenser for the air conditioning system, it’s time to remove the cover and hose off the condenser’s coils and fins. The refrigerant will cool faster when the fins and coils are clean. (Experts usually recommend placing a flat piece or board or other object on top of the condenser during the off-season, rather than entirely covering it, since the latter will trap moisture in the unit.)
- Use a programmable thermostat to lower energy costs, setting the temperature higher when you’re not at home or asleep (during the cooling season).
- Ask an HVAC contractor to service your air conditioner to increase energy savings. The DOE states that running poorly maintained equipment can raise energy bills by as much as 25 percent.
- Check the air filter for the blower and clean or change it to increase the life of your air conditioner and reduce premature wear on the whole system.
- Use an attic fan to keep your home cooler by pulling in cooler air to replace the hot air that builds during the day.
- Install attic insulation to achieve the DOE’s recommendation of 16 inches or more to resist heat transfer summer and winter.
- Shade the south- and west-facing windows to lower heat gain. Some window films resist heat transfer both summer and winter, and are fairly easy to apply.
- Seal the air leaks around windows and door frames. Larger gaps around pipes, wires or cables are easy to seal with expanding foam. Smaller cracks can be filled with caulk.
To learn more about energy savings during the different seasons, please contact us at Marsh Heating & Air Conditioning. We’ve provided quality HVAC services for the Twin Cities since 1974.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about energy savings and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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