It's Getting Hot in Here: Energy-Saving Air Conditioner Tips

Great tips

Those are great tips, short of installing a geothermal system. Here is a great example http://geothermalexperts.net/residential_systems.html

Sandy of FL @ Aug 20, 2009 18:40:24 PM

Air condidtion your home or not???

I would have to agree with Deana of TX,she is right, rather turn down your air con so that it doesn't have to work extra hard again when you switch it on again, we are all trying to do our best not to use too much energy, and to save our planet, if we all do our bit it will help in the long run then doing nothing.

www.smsystems.co.za

Sue | Air Condidtioning @ Apr 28, 2009 05:32:24 AM

Saving on AC

A basic principle: it takes far more than two times the energy to cool the air two degrees than to cool it one degree. As with wind resistance & speed, it's a geometrical relation, not an arithmetical one.

Cool one room more than the rest of the house, & hang out in that room. Put your TV, computer, and exercise machine in that room. With kids, you'll need 2 rooms.

When showering, use cool water for a few minutes before you get out. This feels good & lowers your body temp so you won't get all sweaty as soon as you get out. The cool water takes a few minutes to draw the heat out of your body. (You'll find out how long it takes by the amount of after-shower sweating.) Drying/dressing in front of a fan while damp enhances evaporative cooling. Do one or both & you won't need as cool a room to get dressed in.

Set the AC to “not-hot”, instead of cool, 77 instead of 72. (Losing weight? Eat until “not-hungry” instead of full.)

Reduce your sunny-day cooling load with a sprinkler hose along your roof ridge. Attach it to the roof cap with some bent wire, & run a lightweight hose to the ground. Running it on hot days for just long enough to wet the roof will cool the roof & all the structural materials under it. The water will evaporate quickly at first; it can take about 5-8 minutes (a shower's worth of water) to cool it to the point where it leaves the whole roof wet. On a very humid, 100-degree day, doing this once mid-afternoon & once about 3 hours before sunset reduces the inside temperature about 10-15 degrees for the evening in a wood-framed ranch house with 14" of attic insulation. With no AC. Those rafters/trusses & shingles can hold a lot of heat & radiate it down into the house thru the night. This works on humid days, too, because the roof temperature is so much hotter than the air temperature that it reduces the relative humidity at the roof surface. It's the evaporation that does the cooling, so when the roof is fully wet, shut off the water.

AC was rare before the 60s, and people lived without it. The "never let 'em see you sweat" aesthetic is a result of anti-perspirant advertisers' playing on people's social insecurities & subconsciously manipulating them to perceive sweat as disgusting. This manipulation has been effective, & this aesthetic has made AC a kind of sacred cow. One hears often about the energy waste of SUVs and incandescent bulbs, but rarely about the aggregate energy cost of AC, which is far bigger than both of the others. Keep your body clean, and sweat isn't a problem. Question those manipulated intuitions and associations and generate some indignation about having been manipulated by Madison Ave. You can still keep cool, but you'll do so by choice, not because of some neurotic compulsion you've been conditioned into by big business to sell anti-perspirants.

Bob of MA @ Aug 25, 2008 14:49:29 PM

CEILING FANS & COOLING

AN EASIER WAY TO REMEMBER WHICH WAY CEILING FANS GO. IN SUMMER THEY SHOULD GO CLOCKWISE AND IN WINTER COUNTER CLOCKWISE.

KERRY of LA @ Aug 25, 2008 14:18:28 PM

DO NOT TURN OFF YOUR A/C

My father owns an HVAC company, so I grew up with this stuff. DO NOT turn off your A/C. On a hot day, your house can get up to 80+ degrees. Then your A/C has to work twice as hard to get the house back down to a comfortable temperature. Instead, learn to live with a few degrees colder/warmer (depending on the season) than usual. Your body probably wont notice much chanage. Instead of 70, keep your house at 72 in the summer. When going to work, you can bump it up to 75. If you have a programmable thermostat, this works great. However, don't sway any more than a few degrees from what you would normally set it at. This will cause moisture in your house to build up, damaging food, furniture, etc. and not very effecient for your A/C, causing it to work very hard and reducing the life.

Also, especially important if you have a 2 story b/c heat rises - keep your fan on at all times, not on auto or put fans upstairs. This will cool the upstairs and allow you to keep the stat set a little higher than usual.

of OH @ Aug 25, 2008 11:14:27 AM

A/C TIPS

I MOVE ALL OF MY PLANTS TO ONE BIG INDIRECTLY LIGHT WINDOW AND PUT ALUMINUM FOIL OVER THE REST. HELPS ALOT.

CINDY of OK @ Aug 04, 2008 21:56:20 PM

Fresh night

sleep with fresh clothes like shorts or just under clothes u will be less hot or the best open ur windows and put the fan on dont use heavy blankets just a sheet

Jenn of CA @ Aug 04, 2008 20:01:46 PM

A/C Thermostat Management 101

If you live in a humid climate, then you should invest in a dehumidifier. Doing so will allow you to set your thermostat higher while you're away without running the risk of mold and the musky smell of moist uncirculated air.

Now for managing your thermostat:

1) Do not ever turn the A/C off completely, instead set it to 80 when you leave. If you let it get much warmer, then you will use a lot of energy cooling it back down to something comfortable.

2) When you return, gradually lower the thermostat to your desired temperature over a couple of hours (76 - 78 is usually good for most people in most climates). This will prevent your A/C from constantly running - another huge expense; and, it should not take long to cool off if you follow #1.

3) Set the thermostat even lower before you go to bed (at least 72 - 74). Doing so will provide 2 great benefits, the cooler dry air will eliminate moisture from your home thus inhibiting mold growth and the cooler temperature is great for you body because it induces a good night's sleep.

4) Use ceiling fans only when you are in the same room. Research has shown that ceiling fans don't actually cool your home, they only move the (warm) air around. However, it's that 'breeze' that makes you feel cooler. This should allow you to sit around the house on a hot weekend afternoon with the thermostat on 78, or even 80.

5) Always remember to turn off any appliances/electronics when you are not using them. For example, your computer generates a lot of heat and costs money to leave on overnight.

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Jonathan Clouser of FL @ Aug 04, 2008 18:56:26 PM