Energy Efficient Cooling and Air Conditioning Tips
Cooling and air conditioning are among the most significant inventions of the past century. They made blockbuster summer movies possible and also helped boost production for wartime supplies and aircrafts.
However cooling puts a huge demand on electric systems and causes huge quantities of pollution. This particular IEA report aims to raise awareness of the negative impact of this demand and provides solutions.
Energy Efficiency
When you are choosing the right cooling system, energy efficiency is a crucial factor. Upgrade to an efficient air conditioner and you will save money on energy bills, as well as reduce your environmental impact. The energy efficiency of air conditioners is evaluated in a variety of ways that include SEER and EER. These ratings tell you how much a unit can cool with a certain amount of energy consumed. The higher the score, the more efficient the unit is. The SEER rating of a system can be located on its yellow Energy Guide Label or by searching “SEER ratings”.
When you are looking for a new air conditioning system, search for one with a good SEER rating. This rating shows how the unit performs under normal conditions in a given season. If you’re replacing an older model with a higher SEER rating, it will greatly reduce your energy consumption and cost.
Air conditioning systems can be affected by other factors as well. For example high levels of humidity in the indoor, lack of maintenance, and duct leaks could all make your system more efficient and consume more energy. Keeping up with routine maintenance and sealing duct leaks are simple steps to increase your system’s energy efficiency.
Large commercial cooling systems have their own energy efficiency considerations, too. These systems often use the combination of split or packaged compressors that have huge pipe networks to distribute cooling throughout the building. These systems may also include steam systems that require special maintenance in order to prevent the pipes from getting blocked.
In addition to that, many of these huge systems are controlled by a system known as a Building Automation System (BAS) which connects all heating and cooling systems within the building into one central system. Verde has helped optimize the performance of systems by providing retrocommissioning suggestions that have rapid paybacks.
The global effort to curb the impact of climate change is largely dependent on the efficiency of cooling and air-conditioning. We need to ensure that cooling appliances are extremely efficient and that consumers want them. In the meantime, we can take other measures to reduce our energy use and greenhouse gas emissions.
Indoor Air Quality
Many people spend much of their lives in buildings and these structures could pose significant health threats if their indoor air quality is poor. There are numerous ways to improve IAQ and prevent common problems like allergies, asthma fatigue, allergies, etc.
Particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, and carbon dioxide are three of the most common pollutants in modern office and home buildings. These pollutants are released into the air due to a variety of activities, including cooking, cleaning, and smoking, and they can cause respiratory problems and allergic reactions.
The high levels of humidity can also wreak havoc on air quality. Moist air encourages the growth of mold and mildew, which can trigger respiratory issues. Monitoring humidity and keeping the moisture level low is key to preventing these problems. This can be accomplished by regularly cleaning and vacuuming, washing bedding, soft furnishings and making use of a humidifier or dehumidifier that is based on the humidity gauge.
In addition to the obvious health benefits as well as the obvious health benefits, improving IAQ can improve the comfort of homes. For instance, a home that is contaminated by air pollutants could be stale and smell unpleasant. It can also trigger itchy skin, irritated eyes and a snoring feeling. This can be addressed by installing an air purifier, keeping the HVAC system, and ensuring that doors and windows are opened to allow air circulation when needed.
Symptoms of poor air quality can be a variety of symptoms and include headaches, difficulties in concentrating, or general malaise. These symptoms may resolve after leaving the area however, prolonged exposure to poor air quality can worsen existing health conditions or even trigger serious illnesses.
Ventilation is the main factor that affects IAQ. This can be affected by the weather, occupancy rates, and also the design of the building. There are simple ways to improve IAQ. This includes introducing plants in the home, opening windows and doors whenever feasible, and making sure that the HVAC system works effectively. For those who would prefer more of a thorough approach, it is suggested to consult a Comfort Specialist regarding an assessment of indoor air quality.
Smoke Pollution
While central air conditioners do a great job of removing the majority of biological pollutants, such as bacteria, molds, pet dander, and pollen, they are not designed to eliminate smoke particles. Wildfire smoke contains microscopic particles which can cause symptoms such as burning or itchy eye, congestion, runny nasal, and coughing. They can also cause irritation to your lungs and cause worsening of chronic lung and heart problems. The tiny particles of smoke can get stuck in your lung, triggering a myriad of health effects such as aggravated asthma, bronchitis, and damage to your heart and lungs.
The smoke that blanketed New York City last week was caused by forest fires raging in Canada. It is also causing dangerous air quality conditions throughout much of the south and north of the United States. The thick smoky haze decreases visibility and creates breathing problems for those who has to be outdoors.
Unfortunately, there is no way to completely block smoky air from entering your home or business through doors and windows, especially older homes with many drafts and cracks. You can take steps to lessen the amount of smoke entering your building.
Close all windows and doors when it’s smoky. This will reduce the amount of smoky air by 30 percent. If you can, place damp towels on the door frames and cracks in order to slow the movement of smoky air into your home or office.
If your HVAC system has the recirculation feature, make sure to turn it off during smoky conditions. This will allow the system to eliminate the smoke outside, rather than returning it to inside. If your structure has ducts that connect to areas where contaminants are likely to be high, like parking garages or loading docks, you should ensure that these ducts are kept away from the rest.
The EPA recommends that you change your HVAC filters more often when you are in a smokey environment to ensure that they are removing contaminants from indoor air. Select a filter that has a minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV) of 13 or more, since these filters are specially designed to eliminate gases and smoke pollutants.
Supercooling
Supercooling is a trend to save energy that has become more popular in recent years. It’s based upon the notion that electricity isn’t priced the same amount at any given time of the day. Most energy companies offer “time of use” plans that offer different off-peak and peak rates. Supercooling allows homeowners to cool their homes in advance during off-peak hours, meaning they don’t need to run air conditioners at those expensive summer peak hours.
This requires a programmable thermostat that can adjust automatically. Even with this homeowners must take the time to analyze their electricity usage patterns to determine when their air conditioner will be the most efficient. Many people save about 25% or more on their energy bills by using this method.
To make the house super cool the home, the homeowner set their air conditioner to a lower temperature in the morning, and then keeps it at that temperature for a few hours. This cools the walls, floors, furnishings and fixtures as well as the air inside. When peak energy costs hit the homeowner, he or she will turn the air conditioning up and then leave it running until the next time it is turned off.
This method is efficient since cooling doesn’t just refer to making the air inside the home cooler. It’s crucial to prevent heat from entering your home through windows, doors and other points that leak. It’s important that homeowners double-check their homes’ insulation and seal any drafty or leaky areas. Also, they should cover windows to block out the sun, especially in areas that are exposed to direct sunlight during the hottest parts of the day. Additionally, they should make sure that all windows and doors are tightly sealed to stop air from escaping during cooling cycles. They should also consider using smart thermostats to assist them remember when to begin and stop cooling. This makes it easier for homeowners to keep their energy costs low without worrying about forgetting to switch off or on.