Energy Efficient Cooling and Air Conditioning Tips
Air conditioning and cooling are among the most significant inventions of modern history. They made blockbuster summer movies possible and helped boost production for wartime supplies and airplanes.
However, cooling puts a large demand on electric systems and creates massive quantities of pollution. This particular IEA Report raises awareness of the issue and offers solutions.
Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency is one of the most important factors to consider when selecting a new cooling unit. The upgrade to a more efficient conditioner will help you save on energy bills and reduce environmental impacts. Air conditioning units are rated according to a variety of energy efficiency ratings, such as SEER, EER, and HSPF. These ratings indicate how much a unit is able to cool in a given amount of energy consumed. The higher the score, the more efficient the unit. You can find a SEER rating of a system on its yellow Energy Guide label or by searching for “SEER ratings” on the internet.
When looking for an air conditioner for the first time pick one with a high rating. This rating indicates how efficiently the unit performs in normal conditions. If you’re replacing a model that’s older with a higher SEER rating, it will drastically reduce your energy consumption and cost.
Other factors can impact the efficiency of air conditioning systems, too. Insufficient humidity in the indoors, insufficient maintenance and duct leaks, for instance, can cause your system to perform more efficiently and consume more energy. Regular maintenance and sealing ducts leaks are easy ways to increase the efficiency of your system.
Large commercial cooling systems come with their own energy efficiency concerns, too. These systems make use of a combination of split or packaged compressors as well as massive pipeline networks to supply cooling throughout the building. They might also have steam systems that require special maintenance to prevent the pipes from becoming blocked.
A lot of these huge systems can also be controlled with a Building Automation System, which integrates the cooling and heating systems into a single central system. Verde has helped optimize the efficiency of these systems by providing retrocommissioning strategies that offer quick paybacks.
Energy efficiency in air conditioning and cooling is a key component of global efforts to reduce climate change. Ultimately, we need to ensure that manufacturers bring super-efficient cooling equipment to market, and that consumers demand them. In the meantime we can take additional steps to reduce our energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Indoor Air Quality
Indoor air quality can be a major health risk for those who spend a significant portion of their lives in buildings. There are many ways to improve IAQ and avoid common ailments such as asthma, allergies fatigue, allergies, etc.
Particulate matter (PM) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and carbon dioxide are the three most frequent sources of pollution in modern offices and homes. These pollutants can be released into the atmosphere by a number of activities like cooking, cleaning and smoking. They can cause respiratory issues and allergies.
The high levels of humidity can also cause havoc on air quality. Moisture can encourage the development of mildew and mold that can trigger respiratory issues. To avoid these issues it is essential to monitor humidity and keep the moisture level at a low level. This can be done by regularly cleaning and vacuuming, washing bedding, soft furnishings and using a humidifier or dehumidifier based on the humidity gauge.
In addition to the obvious health benefits of improving IAQ, it can also increase comfort in your home. A home with high levels of air pollutants such as radon, for instance, can smell musty. It can also trigger irritated or itchy eyes and also a snoring sensation. Installing an air purifier and maintaining the HVAC system can help to prevent these issues. Also, ensure that you open doors and windows for ventilation whenever you need to.
The signs of poor air quality are varied and can include headaches difficulty in concentrating, and general feeling of malaise. These symptoms may resolve when you leave the room however, prolonged exposure to poor air quality can worsen existing health conditions or cause serious illness.
Ventilation is the most important aspect that influences IAQ. This is affected by the weather, the occupancy rate of rooms and the design. There are a few easy methods to improve IAQ. These include adding plants to the home, opening windows and doors whenever possible, and ensuring that the HVAC system works properly. If you’re looking to take it a further, we suggest that you speak with a Comfort Specialist about an assessment of indoor air quality.
Smoke Pollution
Heat pumps and central air conditioning systems are effective at removing biological pollutants such as molds, bacteria, pet dander and pollen. However they cannot remove smoke particles. Wildfire smoke contains microscopic particles which can cause symptoms such as burning or itchy eyes, congestion, runny nasal and coughing. They can also cause irritation to your lungs and aggravate lung and heart conditions that are chronic. Smoke particles can cause variety of health problems, including bronchitis and aggravated asthma.
The smoke blanketing New York City this week is the result of forest fires in Canada and is causing dangerous air quality conditions across much of the northern US and southern Canada. The dense smoky haze reduces visibility and creates breathing problems for those who must be outdoors.
Unfortunately, there is no way to completely stop smoke from getting into your business or home through doors and windows especially older houses with many cracks and drafts. You can take steps to reduce the amount of smoke that enters your building.
Keep all doors and windows shut when it’s smokey outside. This will reduce the amount of smoky outside air by 30%. If you can, put wet towels around the door frames and cracks in order to slow the movement of smoky air into your home or office.
If your HVAC system has an recirculation mode, make sure to switch it off during smoky conditions. This allows the system to exhaust the smoky air directly outside, rather than recirculating it inside. If your building has ducts that connect to areas where contamination is likely to be high, such as parking garages or loading docks it is important to ensure that these ducts are kept away from the rest.
The EPA recommends that you change your HVAC filters more often in the event of smoke to ensure that they are eliminating contaminants from indoor air. Choose a filter that has an MERV that is at least (MERV) which is 13 or more. These filters are designed to get rid of smoke and gaseous air pollution.
Supercooling
In recent years, supercooling has been an energy-saving method that is popular. It’s based off the idea that electricity prices vary at different times of the day. In reality, the majority of energy companies offer “time-of-use” plans that provide different off-peak and peak rates. Supercooling allows homeowners cool their homes in advance during off-peak hours, so they don’t need to run air conditioners during the expensive summer peak hours.
This requires an automatic thermostat that can be programmed. However even with this, homeowners need to take the time to look up their electric usage patterns and figure out when it’s most cost-effective to run their air conditioning. A lot of people save 25% or more on their energy bills using this method.
To keep the home cool homeowners, they set their AC to lower temperatures in the morning, and then keeps it at the same setting for a few hours. This cools the home’s walls as well as floors, furniture and fixtures, as well as the air inside. When peak energy costs hit, the homeowner will turn the air conditioning up and leave it on until the next time it’s shut off.
This strategy works because cooling isn’t only about keeping the air inside the home cool. It’s important to prevent heat from entering your home through your windows, doors and other leaky areas. That’s why homeowners should double-check that their home is sealed and cover any drafty or leaky areas. They should also cover windows to block out sunlight, particularly in areas that get direct sunlight during the hottest times of the day. Also it is important to ensure that all windows and doors are sealed to prevent air from escape during cooling cycles. They should also consider using smart thermostats to help them remember when to begin and stop cooling. This will allow homeowners to keep their energy costs low without worrying about forgetting to turn the system off or on.