Essential Cooling Tips for Increasing Your Efficiency
When it comes to maximizing your family’s use of their HVAC system, the best place to turn for advice is always to the professionals. They know how the systems work, so they know the best ways to maximize family heating and cooling efficiency using simple upgrades for the house.
Maximizing your family’s heating and cooling systems for increased
 efficiency will not only save you money but will help you to leave less energy waste and reduce your carbon footprint. With more efficient heating and cooling systems, you can spend time and money on other areas of focus you have.
Increasing the efficiency with which you can heat and cool your home will also save you time and stressful repairs. There will be no more drafts that you are constantly searching for, no more sleepless nights unable to regulate the temperature in your room and a generally more pleasant living environment. Implementing many of these tips can also help add value to your house and avoid common HVAC problems.
Increase Insulation to Help Both Heating and Cooling
Most homes can benefit from adding onto the existing insulation within the home. Unless built in recent years with the specific goal of being an energy-efficient home, then there are most likely spots that could be improved with this fix. The best way to assess your insulation needs is to hire a professional that can do a home energy audit.
The first step will be for the inspector to identify what areas need to be properly air-sealed, and then to assess where your systems can benefit from increased insulation. A certified home inspector can also tell you what kind of insulation already in place within your home, as well as the thickness of that insulation.
All those things must be found out in order to properly add insulation to your home, and it is going to be hard for you to do unless you work with insulation regularly, so hiring a professional is the best way to ensure the job is done correctly the first
Window Accessories Aren’t Just Decorative
Windows are a huge threat to the efficiency of family heating and cooling attempts. Around 30% of hot air that comes from a home’s heating system. Not only does a good majority of the home’s heat go out the window, but it also can let cold air drafts in through cracks or gaps in the frames, as well as through thinner glass panes.
Those same glass panes can catch and amplify solar heat in the warmer seasons, dragging the internal temp of the home up. Cool air can also escape through windows just as the warm air did in the cooler seasons.
Even the best most efficient windows are going to allow in some air, and let some out. The best way to minimize its effect on family heating and cooling efficiency is to use the appropriate window accessories to help fight any small cracks or gaps, and to combat any pane thickness deficiencies.
- Thermal Blinds/Curtains/Drapes: Simple as it seems, one of the best ways to combat the gaps or cracks in windows is to pick thermal control blinds and blackout curtains for your home. Closing blinds can keep the air that is heated or cooled to maximize efficiency while keeping drafts out. This will help the systems of the house keep the family heating and cooling needs at a more consistent and efficient temperature throughout the seasons.
- Solar Screens:Â Solar screens are made out of mesh-like materials that are formulated to help block solar energy. When chosen and installed correctly, solar screens can help to block up to 70% of solar energy the sun rays send into your home through glass window panes. Solar screens reduce the light and heat of the sun before it ever gets to the window. As a bonus, it can also reduce the glare into your house.
When picked and installed correctly, these easy and affordable window accessories can help keep the climate in your house to a more manageable level, reducing the amount your heating and cooling systems will have to run and also minimizing stress on the system.
AC Doesn’t Eliminate the Need for Fans
Many people feel that if they have an air conditioning unit they do not need to use fans. The proper use of fans within a home will actually help your ac unit function better. Fans are vital in maximizing your family heating and cooling efficiency.
The fans to use for this are what are known as circulating fans. There are many types of circulating fans, but if you have ceilings that are at least 8 feet high, the best fan to use is a ceiling fan. Whether picking a ceiling fan or another circulating fan – mounted, floor, table – be sure to look for Energy Star labels to ensure maximum efficiency. Proper installation is key to getting an efficient home.
No matter what, make sure you are turning fans off when you leave a room. Fans are for cooling people, not for climate control.
Turn to Trusted Local Experts
For nearly 50 years, First Mate Heating & Cooling have been the trusted experts that Lees Summit, MO has turned to for all heating and air conditioning repairs. If you are looking to maximize how your family heating and cooling system works, there is no one you can trust more to give you the best advice and best prices.
