Today, there isn’t a single person who can live without budgeting their money properly. One of the major ways we spend our money is on cooling our homes. After all, nobody wants to be overly hot in the summer. At the same time, nobody wants to spend all their money cooling their homes either. Fortunately, there are some great ways in which you can reduce AC usage and cut down on your electricity bill this summer.
The Ideal AC Temperature
One of the best ways to cut down on your AC cooling usage and save money on electricity, while remaining cool in your home this summer, is by setting your AC unit to the ideal AC temperature of 78°F. The key is to keep your home comfortable without turning the temperature down really low. With this in mind, when you’re away from home, you can raise the temperature slightly.
When you set your home’s thermometer to 72°F you’re actually increasing your cooling costs anywhere from 12% – 47%. The opposite is also true, in that for every degree you raise your thermostat you’ll save from 3% – 5% on your electric bill – by as much as $25.
Other Money Saving Tips for Your AC
Setting your unit to the ideal AC temperature isn’t the only way you can cut down on your AC cooling bill throughout the hot summer months. Some of the other ways you can save money on electricity and still enjoy a cool home this summer include:
- When you set your unit for the ideal AC temperature, make sure that you also put the unit on a timer. While it takes 4 – 5 hours to cool your home, the cool air will stay in place for another three or four hours. As such, there’s really no need to run the unit overnight. Set up a time to save money on electricity by not running your AC overnight.
- Instead of depending solely on your AC, make sure you’re also using fans. Have them turn on when your AC turns off so you stay cool and your home maintains the ideal AC temperature.
- Maintaining your AC unit will also cut down on your electricity bill. So, set a specific date for checking to make sure your filters aren’t clogged. When they’re full of debris it costs more money to run your AC. However, by cleaning them on a regular basis you’ll save money on electricity.
- Take a shower before going to bed at night. This will help you cool down so you can go to bed comfortably. Since this won’t cost you much money on your water bill and you’ll save money on electricity this is a win-win situation.
- Maintaining the ideal AC temperature is easier when you don’t have the lights on heating up your room. By only using as much light as necessary you save money on electricity, because it’s easier to maintain the ideal AC temperature.
- When it’s time to buy a new AC unit, make sure you choose one that’s energy-efficient. This will cut down on your AC cooling bill, because it doesn’t take as much energy to cool a room.
Since these tips help you cut down on your AC cooling bill you’ll save money on electricity without overheating this summer. Just imagine all the great things you can do with the money you save when you cut down on your AC cooling usage to save electricity.
