5 Energy-Saving Tips for Summer

With family vacations, lazy days spent lounging by the pool, and extra-long beach getaway weekends, summer can be a nice change of pace from the typical rat race. (Just ask students, teachers and snow plow operators, right?)

But there is someone — something, rather — that needs to work extra hard during the summer swelter as we dial down the thermostat. And that’s our air conditioning unit. Of course, AC doesn’t work for free; we see this extra effort every month on the bottom line of our utility bills. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We can achieve sizable energy savings, and maybe even let that HVAC take off early one afternoon. Here are some tips for making it happen…

Think outside the oven

Listen, we can argue all day about the merits of gas vs. charcoal grilling. Let’s just respect each other’s opinions and agree that giving your oven the night off, or the whole summer off, is a bright idea for maximum energy savings and taste. When you fire up the oven to 450F, you’re also adding heat to a house already battling to stay cool. Of course, a nice summer salad, ordering your favorite to-go food, or even reserving oven use for cooler morning hours are solid substitutes, too.

Make a curtain call

When we leave the house, we often give one last sweep through to ensure all the lights are off. But what about the windows? Drawing the curtains and drapes blocks out all that natural sunlight from radiating your interior space, helping to prevent your HVAC unit from working overtime.

Level up your thermostat

If you’re still manually dialing up and down your thermostat to find the sweet spot, it’s time to move onward and upward. Thanks to innovation in appliances, you can now tweak the temperature from your couch — or from halfway around the world via the web or an app. That means you can give your heating and cooling system a well-earned break when you’re away, and have the air just right when you walk in the door.

Mix in some old-school cooling

The ceiling fan has yet to go the way of VCRs and bean bag furniture. In fact, it’s still a critical tool for providing relief from the heat, working in tandem with your air conditioning. Ceiling fans, and even oscillating fans, are far more cost-effective than powering your AC. 

Provide some TLC

AC units are getting more energy efficient, more convenient and just generally better. But they’re not performing all of their own routine maintenance… yet. Be sure to schedule regular service visits with a certified HVAC professional, check and change filters regularly, and if it’s celebrating the big 2-0, it’s time to start thinking about retiring your unit and upgrading.

Staying cool this summer should be a breeze if you follow these simple tips to help save energy, while putting money back in your pocket. To learn more about how StyleCraft delivers a cooler experience when it comes to HVAC installation & insulation, read here.