Five tips To Tune Your Heating and Air Conditioning That Will Save You Money Right Now.

Looking to go green at home and save a few dollars in the process?    Tuning up  your home heating and cooling system will go a long way toward saving the environment and your wallet.  Here are five tips to help you get started.

Did you know that up to half of energy consumption in your home is taken up by heating a cooling? Well now you do.    Here’s how to cut that bill and be a bit greener in the process.

Change your air filter.

Filters are very important.  Most people don’t think about their home filter system and when they don’t bad things happen.  Dirty filters slow down air flow, making the system work harder which is a huge waste of energy.   Simply checking your filter and changing it every couple of months will really help your system work at optimal efficiency.  It will also keep dirt and dust from building up in the system.  Keep your system clean will majorly add to the life cycle of your equipment.

Get a tune up at least once a year.

Maintaining heating and air conditioning equipment is a lot like maintaining a car.   And just as car tune ups get your car better mileage tuning up your heating and air conditioning will get you more bang for your buck, making that call to the maintenance people totally worth it.

Make sure your system has a programmable thermostat

Chances are it does. But if it doesn’t make sure you get one installed ASAP.    With a programmable thermostat you can set your system to heat and cool your environment when you are home and to turn itself off when you’re not.   Which is pretty much a no brainer, especially if you’re like most people and are at work during the week.   This one change can shave a couple hundred dollars a year off of your energy bill.

Check your ducts and seals.  

While this might sound like a tip for the Animal Kingdom trust me, it’s not.  Air ducts move the air from your heating and cooling unit throughout your home. Making sure your ducts are properly insulated and sealed will really help keep the energy your system is generating from leaking out into places that you don’t really care about like the attic, crawlspace, unheated basement, or garage  and makes sure it maximizes the delivery to the places you want to have heated and cooled.   This simple tip can lower your bill by as much as twenty five percent.

The best way to do this is to check the seams and connections on the ducts.   Use duct sealant on the seams and connections in the places you don’t want to heat or cool.   After you’ve sealed the ducts, throw a layer of insulation around them which will keep them from getting hot in the summer or cold in the winter.

Check to see if your equipment is up to date. 

Modern equipment, especially Energy Star equipment is much more efficient way to deliver heating and cooling into your home.   If you’re unsure about how your systems if performing have it checked out by a qualified technician. While the technician is checking your system ask them to check out the installation to make sure that it’s installed the way it should be installed.    This might not seem like a big deal but the fact is an incorrect installation can cost you money.  Making sure your system is absolutely properly installed can boost the efficiency of your system by about 30 percent, which will shave a big chunk off of your power bill and extend the life of your system.

John Gaines is a professional blogger that provides information on Fort Worth heating and repair services and company reviews. He writes for Air Star Comfort Solutions, a leading Fort Worth HYCA systems installation and repair service among many other services.

 

Tags: Construction and Maintenance, home cooling systems, home heating systems, HVAC, solar cooling system

Category: Home Improvements, Saving Energy