Let's Save Energy - Air conditioning and Heating….same concepts, only in reverse.

Hello again.  Have you been doing your part to reduce your energy consumption and help the Earth…and your wallet?  I hope so.  

I was just in a community building yesterday and noticed about 15 recessed lights, with incandescent bulbs, that are probably on 8 hours per day.  My very simple suggestion to the owners was to replace the bulbs with CFL’s  (compact fluorescent lights…we have talked about those previously).  This will save them about $10 per day in electricity costs!  Simple steps…big savings.  I also referred them to my website, www.saveenergyusa.com, for more ideas.

So we have talked a lot about how to reduce our heating fuel consumption, and hence our heating bills. Now that summer is upon us (hopefully!) lets talk about reducing our air conditioning expenses.  

The same concepts apply from our heating discussions.  Infiltration is our biggest enemy.  Remember, air always naturally flows from warm towards cold  (if your burn this into your memory banks, you will start to see all kinds of ways to save energy…it’s the most fundamental yet important concept to understand for energy savings).  

So any open windows, ceiling penetrations, leaks around windows or doors, etc., are all allowing the warm summer air to move into our homes…and then our air conditioner works hard to cool that incoming air, costing money.  

Also, remember we talked about the free solar heat we can collect in the winter with our  windows?  Well, in the summer, that same solar heat is entering our windows, especially south and west facing windows, and our air conditioning system needs to work hard to cool that warmed air.

Infiltration and solar heat gain are the 2 biggest drains on our air conditioning systems.

So, we should focus on these areas by:

• closing all windows and doors when the a/c system is running
• seal off all penetrations and leaky spots in our homes
• if window air conditioners are used, make sure they are installed properly and sealed tightly within the window opening.  Use the expandable accordion slides and install a tight fitting, cut to size, piece of 1 inch foam board in front of the accordion slides
• install blinds and keep them closed when the sun is shining in the windows, ESPECIALLY south and west facing windows.
• Turn the thermostat UP….73 or 74 degrees is cool enough to keep you comfortable
• Use fans -- moving air from a fan can make us feel 15 degrees cooler….running the fan is much less expensive than running the a/c
• Take shorter showers and avoid the dishwasher – they both generate a lot of humidity which makes us more uncomfortable in the summer
• Perform a simple tune up every year or two on central air conditioning compressors

Notice how many of these simple no cost ideas are very very similar to ideas we have discussed to reduce our heating bills.  It’s really all the same concepts, except in reverse (in the summer the warm air is trying to get in our homes, not escape like in winter).

For more information on energy savings and to really understand your home’s energy requirements, please see my website at www.saveenergyusa.com
Saving energy saves us money…lots of it.  And helps the earth.

Think energy savings every day.