Paying Attention to the Thermostat
Cooling the home during hot weather can be quite costly if you don't pay attention to the little details. One component of air conditioning systems that both residential and commercial property owners tend to overlook is the thermostat.
Thermostats are useful items in regulating temperature in various premises. They ensure that your home or business remains steadily held at a certain temperature, and they can trigger the AC to turn on or off depending on the warmth of the outside air. To use your thermostat in a manner that minimises your cooling costs, keep the following tips in mind.
1. Set the right temperature
To save on your cooling costs, establish a reasonable and comfortable temperature for the home and set the thermostat to this temperature. Most property owners tend to overcool their homes when they come in from a hot day. This often results in the air conditioner running for longer periods and increasing your energy consumption.
Stick to a set temperature as much as possible so you can keep track of how much you are incurring to keep the property cool.
2. Avoid cranking up/down the thermostat
After a hot day outside, you may feel it's necessary to turn up the thermostat so you can cool the property quicker. However, cranking the thermostat up/down doesn't cool the home quicker, it simply sets a lower temperature at which the entire property will be held during the cooling process. You will therefore, end up incurring higher cooling costs because the home will become colder than you need it to be.
To save on costs, keep your thermostat at a set temperature to avoid wasting energy.
3. Install a programmable thermostat
One of the best ways of regulating your cooling costs is by installing a programmable thermostat. These allow you to set the air conditioning on when in the home, and off when no one is there.
You can also program them to begin cooling the property as you're on the way back so you can walk into a cool home. This avoids the need to crank the thermostat up and down, which often results in higher utility bills.
4. Avoid using the thermostat with the windows/doors open
Most property owners make the mistake of setting their thermostat to a specific temperature while keeping their windows and doors open. As the thermostat aims to cool the home to a specific temperature, the warm air coming in from the doors and windows will deceive the thermostat and as a result, the AC will remain on for longer than necessary.