How You Can Get the Most Out of Your Air Conditioner
Air conditioners continue to rise in popularity in Australia, with them now being installed in the majority of the country’s estimated 8 million homes [1]. Now imagine if we all used our air conditioners a bit more efficiently…the savings (both for electricity bills and the environment) could be enormous! And as we move towards the warmer months of the year, now is the perfect time to start considering how that can be achieved. Check out our top tips:
Check your existing usage patterns
There are many simple actions we can all take to significantly reduce the power needed to keep our rooms and homes nice and cool. For example, closing all windows and doors and sealing any gaps around them while the air conditioner is running will help to stop cool air from escaping and hot air from entering inside.
We recommend setting your air conditioner’s thermostat to around 24-27 degrees (or as high as you are comfortable with) in Summer. Every degree higher could help to reduce running costs [2]. Additionally, turning your air conditioner on in the morning while the house is much cooler will require less energy than during the middle of the day. Turn your air conditioner off at night and open your window. You may even get a nice cool breeze come through!
Upgrade/install shading and insulation
Shading your air conditioning unit and windows with landscaping such as shrubs or trees can help to keep out unwanted heat and some estimate that it can increase its efficiency by up to 10 per cent [3].
Australian homes are also notorious for having poor insulation compared to other countries and by upgrading your home’s insulation (meaning replacing your existing insulating materials with those that contain a higher R-value (which measures resistance to heat transfer), you can help your air conditioner to work more effectively.
Regularly service your air conditioner
According to Sustainability Victoria, when you do not regularly maintain your heating and cooling system, it can increase your energy consumption up to 30 per cent [3]. In some cases, warranties can also be voided if regular maintenance is not conducted.
Having your air conditioner regularly serviced by an experienced industry professional can help to ensure that your system is running in tip-top condition and help to extend the life of your machine.
The highly professional and qualified team at Crispair can perform air conditioning servicing for both residential and commercial air conditioning units. More information on our air conditioning services can be found here.
Lastly, consider upgrading to a more energy-efficient model
When looking to purchase a new air conditioner, keep an eye out for the mandatory Energy Rating Label which provides consumers with information on the energy efficiency of a product.
Energy Rating states that you can compare the efficiency of different products using the stars, however:
- you must compare products of the same or similar size; and
- due to the different methods of calculating the star ratings you should not compare the star rating on the old label versus Zoned Energy Rating Labels.
You can find the “size” of the air conditioner in the middle of the old label, in the capacity output box.
For more information, visit the Energy Rating website or contact the highly knowledgeable and professional team at Crispair. We’re always happy to help! We stock a range of commercial air conditioners and domestic air conditioners.
References:
[1] ‘Cold Hard Facts 3’, Expert Group for the Department of Environment and Energy, 2018.
[2] ‘Saving Energy’, South Australian Government, 2019
[3] ‘Reduce heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) costs in your business’, Sustainability Victoria, 2021.
