| These tips will
answer some of the most
common questions we
receive. Home
Cooling
&
Heating Fact
Sheet
These simple tips can
slash your cooling costs
by hundreds of dollars.
|
1.
COMPLETE SYSTEM
MAINTENANCE
|
Have a yearly safety
check and tune-up. Each
season, a licensed
heating and air
conditioning technician
should service your
system. It's a small
investment considering
that you may spend as
much as $500 on your
home in just one season.
For safety, the
technician should
inspect and test
Controls and
Disconnects. In addition
to a heating & cooling
system inspection, have
the gas piping and the
furnace's heat exchanger
checked for leaks.
Consult your owner's
manual and have any
additional recommended
work performed. Get any
safety problems fixed
before running the
equipment.
A tune-up consists of
Inspecting the
refrigeration coils,
straightening the coil
fins, oiling the blower
fan and checking the air
flow and refrigerant
level. If the
refrigerant is low,
there is probably a
leak.
Your Real Change
technician can handle
all aspects of
refrigerant sand leak
repairs.
2.
THE OUTSIDE UNIT
Clear away weeds,
debris and snow. If
air can't circulate
freely around your
outside unit, the
equipment will work
harder resulting in
higher bills and service
calls. Never cover it
with a shed or a deck.
3.
THE INSIDE UNIT
Replace or clean air
filters every month.
Dirty air filters are
the #1 cause of air
conditioning service
calls.
But filters are easy
to replace, and you can
do it yourself. Put in a
new one every month
during the summer and
winter months.Be sure
all hardware is replaced
and securely reattached.
You may want to
consider a permanent
filter that you wash
clean instead of
replacing. Some
permanent filters
restrict air flow too
much for some units.
Consult Realchange
Systems for more
information for the best
type of filter to meet
your needs.
4.
DUCT WORK
Inspect for disconnected
ductwork. Disconnected
ductwork is a common and
very costly problem.
If a supply duct has
worked loose from a vent
or a connecting duct,
the air from your
heating and cooling
system never reaches the
rooms in your house. It
spills into your home's
attic or crawl spaces
and eventually leaks
outside. So in effect,
you're paying to cool
the outdoors.
In addition, if a
return duct in your
attic is disconnected,
you're drawing heated
attic air - up to 140
degrees - into your
system. This forces your
system to work even
harder, and may cause
system failures.
To check for
disconnected ductwork,
examine the ducts in
your basement, attic and
crawl spaces.
Remember to keep
safety in mind when
climbing ladders or
crawling in attics.
Remove the vent grills
in each room and make
sure the ductwork is
securely attached and
sealed to the floor or
wall. Rooms in your home
that never seem to
be
conditioned properly
may be a sign of
disconnected ductwork.
Check for Crushed
Ducts.
Crushed ductwork is
another reason some
rooms never are
comfortable. You can
check your ductwork
yourself by looking in
the attic and crawl
spaces, but you may want
to have damaged sections
replaced by a
professional.
Seal Leaks.
Leaky ductwork is
a common problem. As a
matter of fact, about
25% of every dollar
spent on cooling can be
lost through leaky
ducts. Examine your
ductwork for cracks,
splits or bad
connections. Turn on
your system and feel for
escaping air. Look for
tell-tale black marks on
the duct's insulation,
especially around the
joints. These are caused
by dirt collecting
around air leaks. Be
sure to seal leaks
carefully with
mastic-type sealant,
duct tape, which will
not deteriorate over
time.
If your furnace is in
the garage, make sure
that all possible leaks
in the return-air path
are sealed. Otherwise,
unwanted fumes can be
sucked into the house
through those openings.
Some furnaces sit on a
raised platform in the
garage, and extra care
is needed to seal this
type of return-air path.
Ask a
Realchange Systems
technician to
check your system if you
have any concerns.
Insulate ducts.
Most ducts are
accessible - look for
them in crawl spaces and
attics. Duct work
exposed to extreme
conditions such as attic
& crawl spaces must be
insulated using R-4 or
higher insulated duct
wrap or duct liner.
Realchange Systems can
inspect and advise you
of any deficiencies with
your ductwork. We build
and design all types of
duct systems. Most duct
repairs can be easily
repaired at the time of
service.
5.
THE THERMOSTAT
After tuning up your
system and correcting
any problems, the next
step in cutting your
cooling costs is to
adopt some simple
energy-Save habits. For
instance, you can cut
your system's operating
costs or more simply by
setting your thermostat.
Find a thermostat
setting your comfortable
with and just leave it.
Moving the thermostat up
& down waste energy and
make the equipment work
harder.
There are many
different electronic
thermostats on the
market that move the
temp during unoccupied
times to higher
settings. Consult
Realchange Systems for
which thermostat is best
for your system.
Shut it off when you're
not home.
Don't waste money by
cooling your house while
you're away at work or
on vacation. If you keep
shades and curtains
drawn it usually won't
take much energy to cool
your house down when you
return. However, if you
turn the air conditioner
off on the very hottest
days and turn it on when
you return from work, it
may run constantly
without cooling down
your home very fast. One
solution is to use a
programmable thermostat
to keep the temperature
warmer while you're
away, then automatically
return the temperature
back to the desired
temperature an hour or
so before you return.
Don't overcompensate
with your thermostat
setting - remember,
thermostats are merely
on-off switches. Setting
the control to 60° won't
cool your house any
faster and it will waste
additional energy if you
forget and leave it
running at the low
setting. The best
setting typically for
winter or summertime is
whatever your
comfortable with and
maintain that
temperature without
moving the thermostat up
or down.
6.
VENTILATION
Consider a
whole-house fan. Because
some nights are cool,
but have no breeze, you
may benefit from using a
whole-house fan to force
cool air through your
home. A whole-house fan
is permanently installed
in your attic and draws
cooler air into your
home and forces warmer
air out through your
attic vents. Make sure
there are enough vent
openings so the fan can
work properly. The fan
will need to meet
building and electrical
codes, and it should
have a safety device to
turn it off in case of a
fire. If the attic has
blown-in insulation,
you'll also need certain
measures installed to
ensure that the fan
won't produce a blizzard
of flying insulation!
Ventilate your attic.
Your attic can reach
temperatures exceeding
140+ degrees. You can
save up to 20% on your
cooling bills by
installing vents in the
roof eaves and along the
ridge. Vents must be
equal to each other in
overall size for the air
to flow freely. In
combination with a
whole-house fan which
exhausts air into the
attic, this will help
remove heat that has
built up during the day
in your home.
7.
Shading
Install shade
devices. Shade screens
and tints on windows and
glass doors, as well as
window and wall awnings,
are very effective forms
of passive cooling.
Shading windows and
walls on the sunny sides
of your home can cut
your cooling needs
considerably.
Other Cool Ideas
What to look for in a
new system
If
you're in the market for
a new air conditioning
system, you can save
yourself hundreds of
dollars in energy bills.
HERE'S HOW
Buy a unit with the
highest Seasonal Energy
Efficiency Ratio (SEER)
rating
you can afford.
Use the SEER to
compare different
air-conditioning units.
SEERs for air
conditioners range from
10
to 17. The higher the
SEER, the more
electricity you'll save.
For example, going from
a SEER of 6 to a SEER of
12 could cut your
cooling bill in half.
Don't buy an
oversized unit.
A
unit that's too big for
your needs will waste
energy and money. When
replacing a unit, the
existing size may be too
large if you've improved
your homes
insulation or
upgrade your windows.
Ask your
Real
Change technician
for an exact heat-gain
calculation that shows
the proper size of unit
to buy for your climate,
house size, insulation
level and number of
windows. Do not count on
rule-of-thumb estimates
as they tend to be
inaccurate, and may end
up costing you money.
Locate the outside unit
properly.
Keep the
unit away from
other objects. For
example, don't enclose
the unit with a deck or
shrubbery - it
needs room to
breathe.
WEATHERIZE YOUR
HOME
Make sure your home is
properly weatherized.
While proper ventilation
that you control is
necessary to allow
enough fresh air into
your home, you should
eliminate all
unnecessary leaks. Seal
any cracks, holes or
gaps, especially around
plumbing and other
penetrations through
your ceilings, walls and
floors. Caulk around
windows and doors, and
keep your fireplace
damper closed when the
fireplace is not in use.
It's especially
important that your
ceilings, walls and
floors should be
adequately insulated.
Insulation is rated by
R-value - the higher the
R-value, the more
effective the
insulation. At a
minimum, your ceiling
should be insulated to
R-30, your walls to R-11
and your floors to R-19.
Some types of attic
insulation settle over
time or may be unevenly
distributed and need to
be upgraded to achieve
at least R-30.
TAKE A LOOK AT
YOUR WINDOWS
If you're thinking of
getting new windows,
consider installing
double-paned windows.
They insulate as
effectively as an inch
of foam insulation and
shade as well as tinted
windows, yet look clear.
These types of windows
are available from many
manufacturers.
USE LIGHT COLORS
ON EXTERIORS
Painting walls or
re-roofing with light
colors will help keep
interiors cooler. A
white wall, for example,
reflects 80% of the
light that strikes it,
greatly reducing heat
gain and the resulting
higher temperatures in
your home.
Save Money
Chances are you're
spending more on air
conditioning than you
need to because your
cooling system is out of
tune. It's probably
wasting money and adding
to the strain on the
environment. The good
news is that it's
probably an easy problem
to fix.
Consult your RealChange
Systems technician for
more details.
SAVE MONEY - AND
IMPROVE YOUR COMFORT
Air conditioning is a
major energy consumer -
accounting for as much
as half of summer energy
bills. By simply making
sure that your cooling
system is running
efficiently, you could
save yourself hundreds
of dollars a year. Best
of all, you don't have
to sacrifice comfort to
save on your cooling
bills. In fact, you may
actually be more
comfortable once your
system is working
efficiently.
SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT
In addition to Save
money, an efficient
cooling system conserves
natural resources and
reduces air emissions.
If you're concerned
about our environment,
keeping your cooling
system tuned-up is
something you can do to
help.
TAKE ACTION NOW
The sooner you begin
improving the efficiency
of your cooling system,
the sooner you'll start
Save energy and money.
Take a moment to read
through the simple
energy-Save tips inside.
There's a chance that
your cooling system may
be too old and needs
replacing. If so, be
sure to read the section
on choosing a new system
titled "What to Look for
in a New System". Most
importantly, before you
buy, call Real Change
Systems at 301-662-3661
for the information that
may help you save energy
and money.
Home Cooling
Energy Save Checklist
DAILY
- Don't
jiggle your
thermostat.
- Turn your air
conditioner off or
to a warmer
temperature when you
aren't home
for long periods
- Close curtains,
draperies or shades.
- Use room fans to
increase comfort.
- Avoid baking and
other indoor
heat-producing
activities on hot
days.
- Ventilate when
it's cooler outside
than inside.
MONTHLY
Change filters
or clean permanent
filters.
Clear weeds,
snow and
other debris away
from the outside
condensing unit.
EVERY SEASON,
HAVE A QUALIFIED,
LICENSED HEATING &
COOLING PROFESSIONAL
- Check system
safety devices for
proper functioning.
- Check system air
flow.
Inspect inside
evaporator coils and
drains.
Clean and
straighten the
outside coil fins.
Check for
refrigerant leaks,
and repair and
recharge the system.
Clean and oil
the fan motors and
service other
components.
Inspect ductwork
and repair any
damage and seal any
leaks.
Check the total
system for proper
and efficient
operation.
How your cooling
system works:
Save money and energy
by making sure each
component of your system
is running efficiently.
Air conditioners work a
lot like your
refrigerator. A fan
blows air across a cold
evaporator coil and then
sends this cool air into
your house through the
supply ducts. Warm air
is drawn into the return
ducts and is sent back
into the system to be
cooled. A refrigerant
takes the heat to the
outside unit, where it
is dissipated to the
outdoors. |
