Quick Tips to Lower Your Air Conditioning Costs This Summer

We may be in the final stretch of summer, but the heat seems intent on sticking around for a while. Want to cut your air conditioning costs in half without melting indoors? Here are some quick tips that are guaranteed to lower your AC costs.

Turn off the AC while away

You don’t need to fear coming back to a hot, humid house after work, as you can quickly lower that temperature in no time. Turning off your AC unit while at work and when you sleep will cut costs nearly in half. Use a fan to circulate air as soon as you turn on your unit again, and feel the cool breeze reach you wherever you are in your house.

Get more mileage out of your AC costs

Keep the air conditioner’s target temperature relative to the outside heat. If it’s 35 degrees Celsius outside, set it for at no lower than 24 degrees. Generally, try not to cool your home more than 10 degrees below the external temperature. Doing so will make the air conditioner work harder, resulting in higher costs.

Circulate cool air with fans

Make the cool air go farther with a series of standing fans! They cost far less to run than air conditioners, and the moving air evaporates the sweat on your skin - that’s why they seem to cool you down without actually lowering the temperature.

Keep fans circulating on the top floor, and close any nearby windows. Instead, open windows that are away from the fans to push out the warmer, humid air. Additionally, turn your ceiling fans counter-clockwise in the summer to distribute cold air as widely as possible.

Control the heat that enters your home

You can cut off the heat at its source with some ingenuity. Open your windows at night if it’s cool enough outside, but not if the air is still humid. Doing so allows the warm air to escape, filling your home with cool air to last throughout the day.

Invest in light-blocking curtains, solar screens or blinds to lower air conditioning costs significantly. These can each block nearly half of the heat coming in through a window, letting you reach cooler temperatures while lowering your air conditioning costs. This combination works particularly well for windows facing east and west.

Invest in Tilt & Turn windows for long-term energy savings

Consider installing Tilt & Turn windows to help you save money on your cooling costs while keeping your home secure. Tilt & Turn windows allow for homes to be ventilated while still remaining secure and locked in place. With a simple turn of the handle, the window tilts inwards at the top – perfect for letting cool night time air into a house. Alternatively, with a further turn of the handle, the windows swing fully inwards allowing for full air circulation. Catana Tilt and Turn windows also use glass that is 30% thicker than standard windows, preventing temperature transfer from the outside in.

Call us at Catana Windows for more information!