When it’s hot, as much as you love to stay cool with an AC, you might be thinking about the electricity bill. You are not alone! We have thought about how to save the AC electricity bill. In this post, we will give some essential tips on how to use your air conditioner in a way that decreases electricity consumption.
Read More: How to Guide: Cleaning and Maintaining Your Humidifier
Clean Your Air Filter
The first step towards efficient energy usage involves the indoor unit’s air filter. Most ACs have an air filter at the top, which is simple to clean. Pull out the filter and remove the dust and grime by rinsing it under clean water.
A clean filter might not seem directly related to energy saving at first. But consider this: if the filter is clogged with dust, it reduces the airflow, causing the compressor to work harder to cool the room. Insufficient airflow through the indoor unit can result in the AC struggling to keep up during hot summer days. This means the compressor must work harder to decrease the temperature, increasing your energy bill.
Adjust the Fan Speed (more is less)
Another common mistake you might make while running the AC is setting the fan at the lowest speed. It’s better to set the fan to the maximum to ensure maximum airflow through the indoor unit. If the filter is clean and the fan speed is high, your AC will quickly cool your room. This efficiency allows the compressor to slow down, ultimately saving electricity.
Set the Right Temperature
The goal of having an AC is to keep yourself comfortable, not to feel cold. Therefore, you should maintain an optimal temperature. For example, keep the temperature around 26 or 27 degrees Celsius (78 or 80 Fahrenheit) on peak summer days. You can always experiment with these settings to find what’s most comfortable for you. Remember, the goal is to balance comfort and energy efficiency.
Use the Power Saving Settings
If you have an inverter AC, you’ll have additional energy-saving options. For instance, some AC models allow you to control the compressor’s speed, enabling it to run at 40%, 60%, or 80% capacity. Adjusting the power level can significantly affect the AC’s energy consumption.
Clean Your Condenser Coils
Keeping your condenser coils clean is also an essential part of energy saving. These should be cleaned at least once a year. When dirty, the condenser coil’s efficiency in releasing heat from the room can significantly decrease, leading to higher energy usage. Always remember to unplug your AC before cleaning the coils for safety.
The condenser coils are filled with refrigerant gas. When the refrigerant goes through an expansion valve, it gets ice-cold. This cooled air goes inside your indoor unit. Here, the refrigerant absorbs the heat inside your room and sends it back to the compressor. After compression, the now-hot gas goes to the outdoor unit coil. If this coil is dirty, the heat transfer process is less efficient, causing your electricity bill to increase.
Additional Tips to Save Energy with AC
We discussed in the above part some tips and air conditioners settings that would help decrease electric consumption. Nonetheless, ACs will consume energy when on, no matter what. Let’s look at other ways to reduce AC usage and stay cool simultaneously.
Use Ceiling Fans
Combining AC and a ceiling fan can do wonders for the cool airflow in your room. Fans are typically low-energy consumption devices. They help with air circulation. When combined with an AC, the airflow will circulate more effectively, and the room will cool down faster. The AC won’t have to work hard to maintain the cool airflow, resulting in less energy consumption.
Seal the windows
Common sense is to close windows and doors to escape the sweltering sun, the outside moisture, and the overheating. Think of it like securing a parameter from intruders. What do you first do? It’s obvious; ensure everything is closed. However, since air is an easy-to-enter intruder, you should check for leaks or small gaps around the house’s windows and doors!
Get a Smart Thermostat
It’s unsurprising how machines nowadays are intelligent and can simplify much of your work. Thermostats are no different; you can also invest in a smart thermostat that learns your working schedule and how you prefer your home’s atmosphere so it can maintain a specific room temperature, optimizing energy. The smart thermostat can turn off the AC when you’re out and know when to turn it on again based on what hour you return.
Use a Dehumidifier
A dehumidifier can cool your home and help save energy, thus, bills! It works on removing water from the air, reducing relative humidity to the desired level. That way, your air conditioner runs less often!
Read More: How to Use a Dehumidifier to Cool a Room?
For every problem we face, there might be a costly solution, or we can find a way around, an ethical hack, to reach our preferred aim! I hope you found these clever tips helpful to stay refreshed when the summer heat hits while not breaking the bank!
