Cooling Tips- How to save energy and stay cool

Cooling Tips- How to save energy and stay cool
By Steven Boaze




While most of the United States is under a heatwave, other
locations around the globe are feeling the impact of high
costs regarding utilities.

what I'm about to give you, is from 28 years experience of
HVAC (Heating Ventilation & Air conditioning) in the
residential, commercial and Industrial construction trade.

Heating and cooling your home uses more energy and drains
more energy dollars than any other system in your home.
Typically, 44% of your utility bill goes for heating and
cooling. What's more, heating and cooling systems in the
United States together omit over half billion tons of
carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year, adding to
global warming. They also generate about 24% of the
nitrogen oxides, the chief ingredients in acid rain.

No matter what kind of heating, ventilating, and air
conditioning system you have in your house, you can save
money and increase comfort by properly maintaining and
upgrading your equipment. But remember, an energy efficient
furnace/air conditioner alone will not have as great an
impact on your energy bills as using the whole-house
approach. By combining proper equipment maintenance and
upgrades with appropriate insulation, weatherization, and
thermostat settings, you can cut your energy bills and your
pollution output in half.


AIR CONDITIONERS


It might surprise you to know that buying a bigger room
air-conditioner unit won't necessarily make you feel more
comfortable during the hot summer months. In fact, a room
air conditioner that's too big for the area it is supposed
to cool will perform less efficiently and less effectively
than a smaller, properly sized unit.

This is because room units work better if they run for
relatively long periods of time than if they continually
switching off and on. Longer run times allow air
conditioners to maintain a more constant room temperature.

Sizing is equally important for central air-conditioning
systems, which need to be sized by professionals. If you
have a central air system in your home, set the fan to shut
off at the same time as the cooling unit (compressor). In
other words, don't use the system's central fan to provide
circulation, but instead use circulating fans in individual
rooms.


MAXIMIZE COOLING


¤ Whole-house fans help cool your home or apartment by
pulling cool air through the house and exhausting warm air
through the attic. They are effective when operating at
night and when the outside air is cooler than the inside.


¤ Set your thermostat as high as comfortably possible in
the summer- especially during very hot days. The less
difference between the indoor and outdoor temperatures, the
lower your overall bill will be.


¤ Do Not set your thermostat at a colder setting than
normal when you turn on your air conditioner. It will not
cool your home or apartment any faster and could result in
excessive cooling, and therefore, unnecessary expense.


¤ Consider using an interior fan in conjunction with your
window air-conditioner to spread the cooled air more
effectively through the rooms without greatly increasing
your power usage.


¤ Do Not place lamps or TV sets near your air conditioning
thermostat. the thermostat senses heat from these
appliances, which can cause the air conditioner to run
longer than necessary.


¤ Plant trees or shrubs to shade air conditioning units,
but not to block the airflow. A unit operating in the shade
uses as much as 10% less electricity than the same one
operating in the sun.


PROGRAMMABLE THERMOSTATS


¤ You can save as much as 10% a year on your home heating
and cooling bills by simply turning your thermostat back
10% to 15% for 8 hours. You can do this automatically
without sacrificing comfort by installing an automatic
setback or programmable thermostat.


¤ Using a programmable thermostat, you can adjust the time
you turn on the heating or air conditioning according to a
pre-set schedule. As a result, you don't operate the
equipment as much when you're asleep or when the house or
part of the house is not occupied.


¤ Programmable thermostats can store and repeat multiple
daily settings (six or more temperature settings a day)
that you can manually override without affecting the rest
of the daily or weekly program.


WINDOWS


Windows can be one of your home's most attractive features.
They provide views, day lighting, ventilation, and solar
heating in the winter. Unfortunately, they can also account
for 10% to 25% of your utility bill. During the summer,
sunny windows make your air conditioner work two to three
times harder.


¤ Install white window shades, drapes, or blinds to reflect
heat away from the glass window on the house or apartment.
Close curtains on south and west facing windows. Apply
sun-control films on south-facing windows to reduce solar
gain.


MISCELLANEOUS


¤ Clean or replace filters once a month or as needed. Seal
and/or insulate all ductwork associated with the system.
Keep your fireplace (if any) damper closed. Caulk cracks
around windows and doors. Use fluorescent lamps which are
much more efficient than incandescent bulbs and last 6 to
10 times longer. Turn off lights in any room you're not
using. Open windows when possible to ventilate at night.


These are fundamental and basic energy saving tips you can
do to live in a cool comfortable environment while
operating your cooling system. By working all these
principles, and staying cool during the "Dog Days" of
summer, you'll be saving energy at the same time. Steven Boaze, Chairman, is The Owner of Boaze.com
Corporate Web Solutions. Steven is the Author of
two successful Books, thousands of articles featured
in radio, magazines newspapers and trade journals.
Steven has 25 years experience in journalism, copywriting,
certified Web Developer. http://www.copywriteplus.com
http://www.boaze.com Copyright © 1998-2005 Boaze.com


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