August is peak air conditioning season for a lot of us, and that means your energy bills might be higher now than during any other month.
Raising your thermostat is, of course, the most effective summer cost saving method. After that, it is all about helping your AC unit run efficiently.
And to do that, the one simple thing you can do is keeping a clean filter in your system.
This might just be the easiest and most important thing you can do to positively impact your cost for summer comfort.
Air conditioners vary greatly, and some are simply more efficient than others. However, there is one factor that determines how much energy your particular unit will use to do the job: the amount of time it has to run. Most central air conditioning systems are either on or off. That means anything you can do to reduce the amount of time the unit has to run to maintain your desired temperature, the better.
Dirty filters can hinder the air that flows through them, which makes your system work harder than it needs to. Replacing the filter regularly can also reduce wear and tear on your AC system, extending its life. As air filters become older and deteriorate, they can release fibers and debris directly into the moving parts of your system, which can lead to mechanical breakdowns. A clean filter also screens out pollutants, particulates and dust to improve the quality of indoor air.
Replacing a dirty filter with a clean one could lower the amount of energy your AC uses by up to 15%.