Top Cold Weather Thermostat Tips and Tricks

The cooling and heating system in your home is there to give you comfort and convenience, keeping you cool during the summer and warm in winter. Most homeowners are concerned about their energy usage and bills, so knowing how to adjust your thermostat is vital in helping you save money this winter.
Proper setting and usage of a thermostat will save you money and energy. Below are some tips and tricks to get the most out of your thermostat during the cold weather, while lowering your costs.

Thermostat settings

The general recommendation is that you set your thermostat at a temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit during the winter. However, you can lower your temperature to 68 degrees Fahrenheit, and save energy and reduce your costs. You can reduce your electricity bill by five to fifteen percent by having your house at this temperature when you’re at home during the daytime. If the house is going to be empty during the day, then lower the temperature to around 62 degrees.
Keeping your thermostat at a lower temperature while sleeping will also help to reduce electric bills. You can keep warm by using an extra blanket, and ensuring that all windows and doors are sealed, keeping away drafts and the wind.
Humidity

Indoor humidity has an effect on how your body can perceive the temperature, and lack of it makes it easy to overheat your house. The recommended humidity levels during the winter are 25% to 40%, as humid air holds more heat. Most programmable thermostats will have a humidity display setting, so take advantage of it.
Ceiling fans

By turning your ceiling fans to run counter-clockwise, they will draw the cold air up and blow the hot air down and heat your house. This warm air will allow you to have your thermostat set a few degrees lower, lowering your energy consumption.
Temperature changes

Try and avoid altering your thermostat’s temperature too often. During winter, it’s easy to feel warm, then cold and vice versa in a short amount of time. This feeling can lead to fussing with the thermostat, continually adjusting the temperature, which leads to wasting energy and having higher bills. Therefore, resist the urge to meddle with the temperature, and use blankets or sweaters to adjust your body to the current temperature.
Thermostat placing

To ensure that your thermostat does not give you false readings, you need to place it in a good location. Your thermostat should not be in a place that receives a lot of direct sunlight, in a drafty area or near a fireplace or heat register. To avoid false readings, a thermostat should not be placed on the inside of an external wall, but be put on an interior wall.
Programmable thermostats

A programmable thermostat will let you set a schedule for the heating and cooling of your home. Most thermostats allow up to eight settings, so you can have a cooler house while at work or sleeping, and warmer during the mornings and early evenings. If you’re going to be away on vacation, it lets you set a constant energy-saving temperature.
During the evening, it’s always best to close your curtains, as this restricts cold air from moving across the glass and therefore making it colder. Having closed curtains will reduce heat loss by ten percent.
Call Air Care Home Solutions with any Questions about Air Conditioning

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Top Reasons Your AC Will Break

Top Reasons Your AC Will Break Down This Summer

The dog days of summer are on their way, and your air conditioner needs to be ready to combat the heat. Throughout the summer, your air conditioner is working hard to keep the temperature down so you can live comfortably. Although the cost of your utility bills will increase during these months, air conditioning is needed, especially on the scorching hot days.

Just like your car, air conditioners need regular services to make sure that they are running efficiently and there no repairs need to be carried out. There are a lot of homeowners who neglect their AC systems, and they leave small problems to evolve into a huge problem, like needing a new AC installation.

Three reasons why your AC may break down

It has not been prepared for the summer

Before summer hits, your air conditioner should have had a maintenance check. It’s best to get these done in the springtime to ensure that when summer comes, you can turn on your air conditioner, and it’s not going to break down when you need it the most. Getting a maintenance check towards the end of spring means if you do need a repair, you have enough time to get the problem sorted before the hot days begin to kick in. With regular maintenance, your air conditioner can last you for up to ten years.

There are many components within your unit, and they all need each other to perform correctly. If one piece is damaged, without repair, it can affect to a lot of the other parts too. If all of the components are failing, then not only will your air conditioner be performing poorly, but it’s also never going to get you through the summer, and it will most likely break down. Getting a professional technician in to perform a maintenance check is the most obvious way to prepare your AC for the summer, but there are also things that you can do yourself to help even more:

● You can change or clean out the air filters in your unit. This is one of the most important tasks when it comes to ensuring the efficiency of your AC. These should be changed or cleaned every month, but if you have dogs or cats, you may need to clean or replace them more often. Air filters prevent any debris, dirt or contamination from entering your AC unit and from being blown out into your home through the airflow. They ensure that the air is a lot more pure, and if you allow them to get clogged up with dirt, it can block the normal airflow.

● The drain line takes the condensation from the inside of the AC unit to the outside. You should check the drain line, as if it is clogged, it can cause water damage inside of your home. To stop the drain line from clogging, get a cup of ordinary household bleach and pour it into the drain line from the inside.

● You can clean the outside unit of your air conditioner as it’s important that there is no debris, leaves or grass cuttings covering it as this can block the airflow.

It’s getting close to its retirement

Over the years, your air conditioner works hard so of course, one day, it’s going to have to retire. They take a lot of wear and tear and like a lot of things, and they get to the point where nothing else can be done for them. If your AC is around 10 – 15 years old, then it’s done its job well, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to you if it broke soon. Due to its age, it may be quite expensive to repair and after repairs, it still might not be as effective as it once was or as efficient as a new one. If this is the case for you, it’s worth considering that it might be the time for an AC replacement.

When it comes to getting a new air conditioner, you don’t want your old one to break and leave you without one at all. You’ll be rushing around trying to find a new air conditioner that’s right for you, a technician to install it and more. It can be hard to replace something that hasn’t broken yet as a lot of people think it could have gotten you through a few more summers and it’s a waste. As things like AC systems get old, when they are going to break on you isn’t predictable.

That’s why it’s best to plan ahead. If your air conditioner is over 10 years old, you’ve gotten your money’s worth out of it. It’s certainly worth considering a new air conditioner as if your old one was to break during the dog days of summer, as you’d have to endure the heat with no AC help. Another good reason to get a new AC unit before summer comes is that buying an air conditioner out of season is often a lot cheaper than buying one during the summer.

It has overheated

When air conditioners overheat, they will usually trip the circuit breaker. If this ever happens to you, don’t just go and switch it back on. The whole reason it turned off in the first place is that its job is to protect your home. It shuts off the flow of electricity when the current gets too high. If your circuit breaker keeps tripping, then something is wrong. If the switch has tripped because of your AC overheating, if you keep turning the switch back on, your air conditioner will keep overheating. This can result in your air conditioner breaking down.

Keeping your home at a comfortable temperature

If your air conditioner isn’t working to its full potential, it may need some repairs, so call in a professional technician to resolve the problem. To keep your air conditioner from over working during the hot summer or if your air conditioner has broken down and you need some cooling alternatives, you can do some things at home to help:

● Keep blinds, shutters and shades closed when you can. Windows let a lot of heat through so having the windows covered will keep your home shaded and cooler.

● Try and reduce the use of appliances that generate or give off heat. For example, the kettle, oven, microwave, etc. Of course, you can’t stop using these completely, but by reducing the use of them, it will help in keeping your home cooler.

● Use fans. Although fans don’t make the temperature any cooler, because they circulate the air, they can make your home feel more comfortable. Don’t use the fans in rooms that aren’t being occupied though as it’s a waste of energy.
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