Lowering Your Cooling Load For Lighter Energy Bills

Across America, residents spend nearly $12 billion on air conditioning every summer. As a central Florida resident, chances are good that air conditioning is responsible for well over half of your electric bills this summer. The key to lower cooling bills is a lower cooling load. If you want to avoid spending a lot of money just to lower your home’s cooling load, you’ll be pleased to learn that there are several low-cost methods to get the job done.

Keep the inside cool

For starters, keep the interior as cool as possible by preventing heat gain from the inside.

• Keep the lights off or turn them down low, and replace inefficient incandescent lights with compact fluorescent bulbs
• Run kitchen, bathroom and laundry room exhaust fans when cooking, showering or drying clothes to draw the hot, moist air outside
• Save any cooking for the evening and choose the microwave, toaster or grill over the stovetop or oven whenever possible

Keep the heat outside

Heat gain on the interior is a concern, but what’s even more important is to keep hot, humid Orlando conditions outside where they belong.

• If you’re redoing the landscaping, shade the roof and windows with trees planted strategically on the south and west sides of your home to help lower the cooling load by 15 to 50 percent.
• Ventilate the attic
• Draw the blinds and drapes during the day to keep direct sunlight out
• Seal air leaks around windows and doors to prevent heat and humidity from getting inside
• Seal ductwork that travels through the attic or garage to prevent heat gain through conduction, an effort that can easily decrease your cooling load by 10 to 25 percent or more

These are just a few ways to keep your Florida home cooler this summer and save on energy bills with a lower cooling load. To learn more about achieving the greatest energy savings possible, or for information on other air-conditioning topics, please contact us at Rinaldi’s Air Conditioning today. We have kept our Orlando customers cool since 1969.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Orlando, Florida and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about cooling loads and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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