Energy Efficient Cooling and Air Conditioning Tips
Air cooling and conditioning is one of the most significant inventions of the modern age. They helped make summer blockbusters, wartime planes and other supplies possible.
However cooling places a significant strain on electricity systems and generates huge quantities of pollution. This special IEA Report raises awareness of the issue and offers solutions.
Energy Efficiency
When selecting an air conditioner energy efficiency is an important factor. Upgrade to a more efficient air conditioner and you will save money on energy bills, as well as reduce your environmental impact. The energy efficiency of air conditioning units is rated in several ways such as SEER and EER. These ratings indicate how much a unit can cool with a certain amount of power consumed. The higher the rating, the more efficient the unit is. You can find the system’s SEER rating on its yellow Energy Guide label or by searching for “SEER ratings” on the internet.
When shopping for a new air conditioning system, look for one with a good SEER rating. This rating reveals how efficiently the unit will perform during the course of a season in normal conditions. If you’re replacing a model that’s older with a higher SEER rating will significantly reduce your energy consumption and cost.
Other things can influence energy efficiency in air conditioning systems, too. High indoor humidity, lack of maintenance and duct leaks for example, can all make your system be more demanding and consume more energy. Maintaining your system with regular maintenance and sealing leaks in ducts are easy steps to improve the efficiency of your system.
Large commercial cooling systems have their own energy efficiency considerations as well. They usually utilize the combination of split or packaged compressors and massive pipes to distribute cooling throughout the building. These systems may also include steam systems that require specific maintenance to prevent the pipes from becoming blocked.
Additionally, many of these large systems are controlled by something called a Building Automation System (BAS) that integrates all cooling and heating systems in the building into one central system. Verde has helped clients optimize the performance of these systems with simple retrocommissioning guidelines that typically provide quick paybacks and incentives for implementation.
Energy efficiency in cooling and air conditioning is a key component of global efforts to mitigate climate change. We need to ensure that cooling devices are efficient and that consumers are demanding them. In the meantime we can also take other steps to reduce our energy consumption and greenhouse gases emissions.
Indoor Air Quality
Indoor air quality is a serious health concern for those who spend a substantial portion of their lives inside buildings. There are many ways to improve IAQ and avoid common ailments like allergies, asthma fatigue, asthma, etc.
Particulate matter (PM) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and carbon dioxide are the three main pollutants in modern homes and offices. These pollutants are released into the air through a variety of activities, like cooking, cleaning, and smoking, and they can lead to respiratory issues and allergic reactions.
The high levels of humidity can also cause havoc on air quality. Mildew and mold can flourish in humid air, which can lead to respiratory problems. Monitoring humidity and keeping the humidity low is essential to avoid these issues. The best way to achieve this is to regularly dust and vacuuming, cleaning bedding and soft furnishings and using a dehumidifier or humidifier as necessary based on hygrometer readings.
Aside from the obvious health benefits as well as the obvious health benefits, improving IAQ can enhance the comfort in homes. For example, a home with a lot of air pollution can turn musty and odor unpleasant. It can also cause irritation or itchy eyes, and a swollen sensation. Installing an air purifier and keeping the HVAC system can help keep these issues from happening. Also, make sure that you open doors and windows for ventilation when needed.
The signs of poor air quality can be varied and include headaches, difficulty in concentrating, and a general malaise. While these symptoms will disappear after leaving the space, prolonged exposure to air pollution can cause health problems that are already present and could lead to serious illness.
Ventilation is the main aspect that influences IAQ. This can be affected by the weather, occupancy rates, as well as the design of the structure. There are a few easy methods to improve IAQ. These include adding plants to the home, opening the doors and windows whenever possible, and ensuring that the HVAC system is operating properly. If you’re looking to go further, we suggest you speak with a Comfort Specialist regarding an indoor air assessment.
Smoke Pollution
While central air conditioners do an excellent job of filtering out most biological contaminants, like molds, bacteria and pet dander pollen, they’re not specifically designed to remove smoke particles. Wildfire smoke contains microscopic particles that can cause symptoms like burning or itchy eyes congested nasal, runny nose and coughing. They can also cause irritation to the lungs and worsen the severity of heart and lung problems. Smoke particles can cause variety of health problems such as bronchitis and aggravation of asthma.
The smoke blanketing New York City this week was caused by forest fires in Canada, and it is causing dangerous air quality conditions across much of the northern US and southern Canada. The dense smoky fog reduces visibility and can cause respiratory stress for anyone who has to be outdoors.
There is no way to stop smoke from getting into your home through your windows and doors, especially in older homes with a lot of drafts and cracks. However, you can take steps to minimize the amount of smoke that enters your building.
Close all windows and doors when it’s smoky. This can cut down on the amount of smoke from outside air by 30 percent. Put wet towels in cracks of door frames and around them to slow down the flow of smoky ai.
If your HVAC system is in a recirculation mode, be sure to turn it off during smoky conditions. This allows your HVAC system to expel the smokey indoor air instead of the air being recirculated. If your building has ducts that connect to areas where contamination is likely to be high, like loading docks or parking garages it is important to ensure that these ducts are isolated from the rest.
The EPA recommends changing your HVAC filters more frequently during smokey conditions to ensure they’re effectively removing the toxins from the air inside. Select a filter with a minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV) of 13 or more, since these filters are specially designed to remove the smoke and other gaseous air pollutants.
Supercooling
In recent times, supercooling has become an energy-saving method that is popular. It’s based on the idea that electricity costs don’t vary by amount at any time of the day. In fact, most electricity companies offer “time-of-use” plans that feature different rates for off-peak and peak times. Supercooling lets homeowners to cool their homes in advance during off-peak times, so they don’t need to run air conditioners during the expensive summer peak hours.
This requires a thermostat with programmable settings that is able to adjust itself automatically. However even with this, homeowners need to be sure to examine their electricity consumption patterns and decide the best time to run their air conditioning. A lot of people save 25% or more on their energy bills by using this method.
To supercool the home, the homeowner set their AC to a lower temperature in the morning, and then keeps it at that temperature for a few hours. This cools the floors, walls furniture, fixtures and furniture of the house as well as the air inside. When energy costs are high the homeowner, he or she will turn the air conditioning up and leave it on until the next time it is turned off.
This strategy is successful because cooling doesn’t just mean making the air inside the house cooler. It also aims to prevent heat from entering the house through windows, doors and other leak points. This is why homeowners must ensure that their homes are properly constructed and insulated, and also insulate any leaky or drafty areas. Also, they should consider using window shades to block sun light particularly in areas that get bright direct sunlight in the hottest hours of the day. It is also important to make sure that all doors and windows are sealed tightly to stop air from getting out during cooling cycles are in progress. Finally, they should consider using smart thermostats to help them remember to start and stop cooling at the ideal times of the day. This allows homeowners to keep their energy costs at a minimum without having to remember to turn the system off or on.
