HVAC
Does turning on your air conditioning system cause your electricity costs to skyrocket? If you’ve wondered why your energy bills are so high in the summer, the increase could be caused by several factors or a combination of many. Sanborn’s Air Conditioning & Heating helps San Bernardino area homeowners increase their savings everyday. Are you wondering: “Why is my electric bill so high in the summer?” In our most recent blog, the technicians at Sanborn’s discuss why your energy bills rise each summer and what you can do to curb those extra expenses.
Why Is My Electric Bill So High in the Summer?
Electric bills increase for many homeowners over the summer months for many different reasons. When the heat of the season causes most people to crank up the air conditioning, demand for electricity rises, which can cause rate increases depending on your electricity provider agreement. Aside from this billing element, energy usage increases are caused by variables affecting your home, most often related to cooling. Cooling makes the biggest impact in this area.
Air Conditioning Use and Your Energy Bills
Air conditioning use makes up a significant portion of a household’s annual energy consumption. Overall, it accounts for 16 percent of electricity consumption across residential consumers in the United States. Air conditioners run using electricity, while other major appliances like heating systems and water heaters can be gas powered. If your home uses gas heating and water heating, you don’t consume as much electricity during cooler seasons, and you’ll definitely see a jump in your bill when you turn the air conditioner on for the summer.
Inefficient Air Conditioners
Plus, not all air conditioners make efficient use of the electricity they consume, which creates higher cooling costs. These mechanical systems also tend to lose efficiency over the years, especially if you don’t maintain them. If you’re wondering why your electric bills are so high in the summer and why they get higher every year, an inefficient air conditioner may be your problem.
Because a home’s air conditioner is such a substantial consumer of electrical power, upgrading your older system for a new high-efficiency air conditioner can make a big impact in your efforts to lower energy bills during the summer months. When you replace an old, inefficient unit with a higher-efficiency model, your home will be cooled using less energy (and the system’s performance will probably be better, too). Anytime you upgrade to HVAC equipment with higher energy-efficiency ratings, you stand to save on energy bills because unit efficiency has a direct impact on energy consumption. You won’t have to worry so much about a rising summer electric bill!
Making More Work for Your Air Conditioner
Air conditioners cool homes by removing heat from the air. There are many ways our daily activities add heat to our homes, which create more work for the cooling system by increasing the amount of heat it must remove to keep spaces comfortable. Washing laundry in hot water, drying clothes, running the dishwasher, baking in the oven, leaving light bulbs on, taking a long shower – these activities will raise temperatures in your home by adding heat to the environment.
When the indoor temperature increases, your air conditioner has to run longer to get the temperature back down, which requires more power. To conserve energy, try to save these activities for after dusk when outdoor temperatures are lower. There will be less of a temperature difference for your air conditioner to make up in order to cool your home, and the added heat won’t be as much of a burden as it is in the middle of the day’s heat.
Ceiling fans are also a great way to cool down your home without lowering the AC. Ceiling fans push cool air down from the ceiling and into your home’s living areas.
Prioritizing Comfort Over Efficiency
Air conditioners consume more energy the lower you set your thermostat. Too often, we set our thermostat temperature for what we feel is ideal without giving thought to how much energy that requires. Though you enjoy when your home is cooled to 70 degrees, might you still feel comfortable with the temperature set to 74? Cutting back temperature settings any amount will reduce electricity usage and costs.
If you want to save even more, set back temperatures for long periods when you’re out of the house for the day. When you roll back temperatures by 7 to 10 degrees for eight hours or more, you can cut cooling bills by as much as 10 percent. This will help reduce your stress over a high energy bill in the summer.
Save Energy with Sanborn’s
Don’t let high electricity bills get you down this summer. Sanborn’s Air Conditioning & Heating helps homeowners improve cooling energy efficiency to help you save money. To find out more about replacing your old unit with a new energy-efficient air conditioner, contact us today and see how much you stand to save this season!