Beyond routine AC maintenance, there are a few summer tips and hacks that will help you keep your summer cooling bills at a minimum.
Get On a Consistent Cooling Cycle
Most home AC systems have a way to set routine temperature control. That way, you can make sure that your home stays at a consistent temp the entire day without having to manually adjust your thermostat.
Set your home’s AC to rise and fall with the day’s natural temperature fluctuation:
- Lower temps at night
- Allow your home’s temp to rise as the day warms up between 9am and 12pm
- Set your home’s temperature gradually higher heading in to the hottest parts of the day allowing it to still cool but without forcing it to work especially hard against outside temps at the hottest part of the day
Don’t Run Your AC System and Mow the Lawn
When your AC system is running, your outside condenser box is working to evaporate hot air from inside of your home. If you’re mowing your lawn while you’re running your AC, you’re kicking up lots of dust and debris that are forcing your system to work harder.
Be sure that you shut off your AC before mowing your lawn.
Convert Your Fans to Force Air “Up”
Most contemporary fans have a switch on the motor housing that changes which way the fan blades turn. During the summer you can circulate cool air around a room more effectively by adjusting your blades to force air “up.”
Think about it: cool air sinks. If your fan blades are pushing air down, they’re just keeping the cool air from your AC unit at the bottom of the room.
But if your fans are forcing air up, they’ll be able to pick up cool air, spread it around the room, and cycle it more thoroughly.
Utilize Room Fans
In some cases, small, directional room fans can help keep you cool when AC and a ceiling fan doesn’t cut it. These are cheap fans that you can buy on Amazon. They are small so they fit on a desk or bedside table and can be pointed directly at you to help keep things cool.
Increase the Amount of Insulation in Your Attic
While this isn’t really a “quick fix,” increasing the amount of insulation in your attic is an easy way to help save money on your cooling bills.
Your attic insulation is a major factor in how stable the temperature is in your home. Sometimes, there just isn’t an adequate amount of insulation in your attic to begin with. In other cases, your insulation will compress over time reducing its efficacy.
The good news is that fiberglass insulation is available at every major hardware store, relatively cheap, and relatively easy to install. Simply buy some, and add it into your attic to help improve your home’s insulative qualities.
