10 Tips for Reducing Room Air Conditioner Energy Waste
The weather is definitely starting to warm up. In order to remain comforta
ble in your home, you might start to use a room air conditioner. There’s nothing wrong with that. However, you should consider proper use of this appliance to reduce energy waste and reduce your electric bill even in the summer.
Here are ten tips for reducing room air conditioner costs:
1. Make sure that you get an energy-efficient Energy Star room air conditioner.
2. Get a room air conditioner with a temperature control timer. This lets you cool the room using the minimum amount of energy necessary.
3. Turn the appliance off when you aren’t using it. This is more comfortable if you do have a timer since you can set it to turn on before you get home. However, it’s worth it to keep it off when you’re not home even if you have to turn it on and wait for the rooms to cool down once you’re home again. There’s no sense in cooling down an empty house.
4. Check to see if your room air conditioner is the right size. Many people get much bigger air conditioners than they actually need. Most rooms only need between 12,000 and 20,000 BTUs per hour. Energy Star has specific information about what size you may need in your home: http://energystar.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/energystar.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=2555&p_created=1147984343
5. Make sure that the air conditioner is installed facing the right direction. You want to maximize airflow throughout the room. Don’t install it in a corner of the room that doesn’t get used! A room air conditioner with directional vents makes this easy.
6. Install the appliance away from heat-producing machines. For example, don’t put your room air conditioner next to your TV. The heat it generates will tell the appliance that it is hotter in the room than it is, keeping it operating longer than necessary.
7. Properly shade the room that you’re in. A sunny room is going to get hotter and will therefore need more work from the room air conditioner to cool down.
8. Make sure that your central air conditioning unit is turned off. The point of a room air conditioner is to cool just the small room that you’re in rather than the whole house. You defeat the energy savings if you turn on your central air as well.
9. Do use a fan at the same time. This can help move the cool air through the room more efficiently without causing a significant increase in your total home energy use.
10. Keep the air filter clean. This keeps the machine working efficiently.