Tips To Keep Your Home Cool With Less AC This Summer And Cut Energy Costs
The summer is on its way, and soon keeping your home cool will require turning the AC on. You will want to reduce your reliance on the AC if you want to save on your energy bills. Doing things like keeping direct sunlight out, servicing your HVAC and ventilating your home on cool nights will help reduce the amount of energy you use to keep your home cool during hot summer days. Here are some tips to help you keep your home cool and rely less on your AC this summer:
1. Service Your AC to Ensure It Is Working Efficiently During Summer Heat
The first step to ensure you save energy during the hottest days of the year is to have your AC serviced. An air conditioner that lacks service can run constantly and cause unnecessary waste of energy. This is also a good time to do other improvements to your HVAC system. Talk with the HVAC technician about improvements like air cleaners that will remove allergens from the air in your home. Air cleaners are good idea for times when the pollen levels are high. Another option to have installed in your home is a carbon monoxide alarm to alert you when there are dangerous levels of this deadly gas.
2. Keep Sunlight Out
Sunlight is a major contributor to heat gain, which will cause your home to quickly heat up and the air conditioner to kick on. To keep your home cool, make sure you keep the sunlight out. The worst places for heat gain are windows that get direct sunlight. If you want natural light, make sure that the windows have shade from features like awnings. Installing curtains is another way to block direct sunlight in windows that get the most sunlight during the day.
3. Ventilate Your Home at Night for Passive Cooling During Summer Months
Passive cooling is a simple way to cool your home during the summer months. On cool nights, crack windows on the lower level of your home, and open a window that is higher. The open windows will create a draft from heat convection currents that will naturally carry the heat out of your home. Since heat rises, convection currents happen as the lower windows allow cool air into your home. This is something that will help cool your home during the night and reduce the amount of energy your AC uses to cool your home during the day.
These are some tips that will help you keep your home cool so you can rely less on your AC this summer. Contact an HVAC contractor to help with some of the servicing and repairs to ensure your AC is working efficiently when you need it on hot summer days.