save energy w/air conditioner?

Question

i was wondering what are some ways to save energy while using my air conditioner (besides just not using it at all). I use it about once or twice a day in short time periods, like for about 1-2hours each. is this better than just leaving it on for 4 hours straight?

any other suggestions would also be very helpful

Answer 1

If you refer to a wide concept, there is not any saving, as the heat you remove it is due to the use of energy to move the compressor and evaporator, you just are doing an interchange between the A/C unit and the energy source.
If you want to save money by controlling the use of your A/C unit, is better if you keep the unit always running at a moderate temperature setting.
Remember, some initial time is taken by the unit to stabilize the temperature in the entire room, that time is a waste of money and it depends mainly of the size of your environment and the Btu of you A/C, if you repeat that some times in the day, you are wasting energy and money of course.

Answer 2

Insulating curtains on all your windows if they aren't insulating glass will make by far the biggest difference.

Remember that an air conditioner uses the most electricity when the room it's cooling is hot. Once the air conditioner system gets the temperature down all it has to do is maintain that and a decently sized system running right should only run about 10-20 minutes an hour and that is largely dependant on the difference in temp from outside to inside and insulation in your home. Obviously in the winter the thing won't need to cool at all.

The best thing to do is keep the a/c unit clean inside and outside, filter clean(a good one not those cheap junk) and keep heat out of the home and from generating it inside. CFL bulbs and efficient appliances work wonders.

I've seen homes (like trailer homes) where the a/c unit runs non-stop from 8 in the morning to about 11 at night. The unit is undersized and they thought it would save money and now their electric bill is about 400 a month in the summer and the house only stays about 15-20 degrees cooler than outside at best.

Answer 3

a lot of people are right.

leave it on 24/7.

the a/c s thermostatically controlled.

if the set point s 80*f. the unit will NOT come on until it's 82*f. period.

another thing, the power company always tells you to turn the t-stat up, NEVER off.

the hotter the home gets the more electricity the unit consumes cooling it down.

kinda like the "jack-rabbit" starts in a car. even temp is like an even speed. maintain temp (speed) for best fuel economy.

also leave the fan on "on" instead of auto.

the fan circulates air. air in motion makes you feel cooler. the refrigeration will STILL go on and off AS NEEDED. but the fan will constantly run.

if you can turn your t-stat 1 or 2*f higher it will save money.

depending on the size and voltage unit, the fan can run equal to 2-5 100 watt light bulbs.

refrigeration can run 15-60 100 watt light bulbs.

Answer 4

Regardless whether you use it for an hour at a time 4 times or just 4 hours straight, it will use the same amount of electric. The only other option is getting a more energy efficient model or if its on for long periods of time, to set the thermostat at 78 degrees. It will require less energy to maintain that temperature than a cooler one.

Answer 5

First of all, to help save energy while using the a/c, you can turn off electronics such as the tv or computer when your not using them since they produce a lot of heat. Turning off lights will also help reduce your electrical usage and will stop them from producing so much heat, which causes the a/c to work more. You can try not using the stove or oven because that will produce a ton of heat. Also, close the blinds on windows that have the sun shining through.
Second of all, it would be cheaper just to keep your a/c on the whole time instead of turning it on and off. This is because when you turn it off, the house will heat back up, and then when you turn it on, it will have to stay on until the whole house is cool again. It's easier to keep something cold if it's already cold. It's harder to cool something if it's hot to start with. Hope this helps! :-)

Answer 6

Knowing what temperatures you are experiencing would have been helpful to make appropriate suggestions, but here's some different ideas:

Combine opening windows on opposite side of the room(s) and using a fan to help circulate air flow between them. Moving air is cooler and can really help make a difference from being unbearable to bearable.

Take a quick, cool shower just to wet down and only pat yourself dry. Evaporating water off the skin will cool you down. Or try just washing your face, neck and arms to acheive similar cooling.

I'm trying to hook up a standard electric floor fan to a solar cell generator (one of the flexible strip kind) to power my fan without electricity.

If it works, I'll post directions on the instructables website.

Kudos to you for wanting to save energy!

Answer 7

When you leave it on, the compressor keeps cutting out in between depending on the thermostat setting. If you switch it off in between, the room gets warmed up so you may not be saving much energy.

Minimise the leakage of cold air out of the room and minimise the leakage of hot air into the room. Minimise activities in the room so that heat generation is minimum.

Answer 8

limit the air space for a/c
maintain temperature at 28*C
proper room insulation
check if the unit is in condition

Answer 9

A fan can make a room feel cooler without changing the temp.

Answer 10

set it to 78 degrees is the general rule.