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For some of us it has been a very hot summer and the electric bill makes us need to catch our breath when we open it! My electric bill doubled between June and July! Fortunately for me I had already started trying to save money on my electric bill so it was not as big of a shock as it could have been!
One thing I do is set my thermostat to 76 when I am going to be out of the house for more than 4 hours and if I am going to be gone for the entire day I set it to 80. When I get home I turn it over to 68 or 70 for an hour and then set it to 72 before I go to bed. Some of you have programmable thermostats and that makes things much easier.
Another good trick if you have a window unit and not Central Air is to put a box fan about 3 feet away from the unit blowing into the room. This will help to cool things down much faster and keeps your air conditioner from over working. Using ceiling fans also help a lot if you have them. Be sure you have the ceiling fan set to turn the correct direction for summer. In the summer the blades should be turning counter-clockwise.
If you live in a dry area, such as the desert, you may need to add some moisture to the air. This can be accomplished in many ways, the most common way is to put a pan of water on the stove. There is no need to turn on a burner or anything as it will evaporate on its own. Many people also put flower vases around the house. This is a way to add moisture without looking like you are doing it at all!
If you live in a very wet area such as coastal or near a large lake, you may have too much moisture in the air and you may need a dehumidifier. Be sure to not over do it! You want to remove some of the moisture but not all of it. There is a happy medium and it is different for every person.
On cool evenings, when the temperature is in the mid to lower 70s turn the air conditioner off and open the windows! This could save you $8 to $10 a day on your cooling bill! Be sure to close the house up before you leave for work the next day. If you have plenty of insulation in your house you may not even want to turn the air back on until the evenings are hot again.
If you live in a house you can also put a sprinkler on the roof and run it at low volume during the hottest part of the day. This helps to dissipate the heat more quickly. Also an attic fan can be very helpful as temperatures may reach 130+ in your attic. By simply venting out the hot air your air conditioner will work more efficiently.
That is it for today. Please feel free to leave any comments that might help out! If you have questions please let me know and I will do my best to answer them!
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One thing I do is set my thermostat to 76 when I am going to be out of the house for more than 4 hours and if I am going to be gone for the entire day I set it to 80. When I get home I turn it over to 68 or 70 for an hour and then set it to 72 before I go to bed. Some of you have programmable thermostats and that makes things much easier.
Another good trick if you have a window unit and not Central Air is to put a box fan about 3 feet away from the unit blowing into the room. This will help to cool things down much faster and keeps your air conditioner from over working. Using ceiling fans also help a lot if you have them. Be sure you have the ceiling fan set to turn the correct direction for summer. In the summer the blades should be turning counter-clockwise.
If you live in a dry area, such as the desert, you may need to add some moisture to the air. This can be accomplished in many ways, the most common way is to put a pan of water on the stove. There is no need to turn on a burner or anything as it will evaporate on its own. Many people also put flower vases around the house. This is a way to add moisture without looking like you are doing it at all!
If you live in a very wet area such as coastal or near a large lake, you may have too much moisture in the air and you may need a dehumidifier. Be sure to not over do it! You want to remove some of the moisture but not all of it. There is a happy medium and it is different for every person.
On cool evenings, when the temperature is in the mid to lower 70s turn the air conditioner off and open the windows! This could save you $8 to $10 a day on your cooling bill! Be sure to close the house up before you leave for work the next day. If you have plenty of insulation in your house you may not even want to turn the air back on until the evenings are hot again.
If you live in a house you can also put a sprinkler on the roof and run it at low volume during the hottest part of the day. This helps to dissipate the heat more quickly. Also an attic fan can be very helpful as temperatures may reach 130+ in your attic. By simply venting out the hot air your air conditioner will work more efficiently.
That is it for today. Please feel free to leave any comments that might help out! If you have questions please let me know and I will do my best to answer them!
.
