social

Saving Money on Air Conditioning


Silver Post Medal for All Time! 364 Posts
June 27, 2007

Electric bill high from air conditioning usage? I have two suggestions, one free and one not so free.

Turn the air off and clean the coils. When they are dry, it's OK to turn air back on. This is for a house unit (I don't know about single room window units).

Advertisement



Have freon level checked by a professional and increased, if needed.

Let me tell you what happened here. The air was going on and staying on for a long time. Seemed to take a lot of compressor effort to cool down the house even a couple of degrees (we turn the air off when we leave the house so it warms up quite a bit). Although the air coming out of the registers felt cool, I felt something was wrong.

We received more freon, and I thought it was all fixed, but after a few days, that feeling came back again. Asked DH how long it had been since the coils were cleaned. OMG! What a difference! What an improvement. The air felt colder and somehow, seemed to run more efficiently. From now on, the calendar has a "clean the coils" reminder.

Obviously, it wasn't just a dirty coils situation. But cleaning them was certainly a step in the right direction. My electric bill will be lower, just 'cause the air doesn't have to run so long.
Advertisement



By Holly from Richardson, TX

Comment Pin it! Was this helpful? 1

Comments


Gold Feedback Medal for All Time! 509 Feedbacks
August 31, 20150 found this helpful
Top Comment

This is a good tip for new home owners or renters who don't know any better! I didn't grow up with a/c, so I had to learn the hard way. Cleaning the coils and filter are SO important! Not just to keep it cooler & save money, but to save your unit also. If the unit gets clogged, it can burn the motor up and you could end up having to replace the motor or the entire unit.
My husband is really bad about doing these things. I don't have to put it on the calendar because if he doesn't clean the filter every couple of months, I start coughing every time the unit comes on.

Advertisement


And if your coils need cleaning, it can be gradual or very sudden, but your place is going to warm up no matter how long the a/c runs. My husband cleaned the coils just this month, but it wasn't doing much good. He ended up having to completely take the cover off the unit and really get in there to clean it because it was so clogged with debris.
Very important you mentioned to turn the unit off, some people don't realize if you spray water or mess with the unit while it's running, you can damage the unit and yourself, lol. I think most units are hooked up to their own little fuse box next to it, and you can also pull the fuse if you want to be safer.

Reply Was this helpful? Yes
Read More Comments

More Solutions

Share on ThriftyFunThis page contains the following solutions. Have something to add? Please share your solution!

June 16, 2005

Tips for getting the most out of your air conditioner. Post your ideas.

Comment Was this helpful? Yes
Read More...

April 20, 2005

Don't wait till summertime to install an air conditioning unit. If you can wait till the 1st week in September through the 2nd week in October.

Advertisement

Air conditioning systems usually are marked down sometimes up to 30% in price.

Comment Was this helpful? Yes
Read More...

4 Questions

Ask a QuestionHere are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community or ask a new question.

May 31, 2016

I'm on disability and I desperately need an air conditioner. I'm on limited income and was wondering where I can find one.


Answers

June 1, 20160 found this helpful
Best Answer

This is the wrong time to be trying to get an air conditioner. The best time is winter. Now that the weather is warming up everybody is going to be scrambling to get one and you'll have a harder time finding one.

Advertisement


A nice person might let you buy one for less than they know they can charge if they understand your predicament. Try finding moving sales. People who are moving likely won't want to move the air conditioner because they are heavy and the new place might already have one.
If they turn down your offer, come back at the end of the day and see if they still have it and need to get rid of it.

Reply Was this helpful? Yes
Answer this Question
In This Page
Categories
Home and Garden Home Improvement CoolingNovember 4, 2016
Pages
More
🌻
Gardening
👔
Father's Day Ideas!
👒
Mother's Day Ideas!
Facebook
Pinterest
YouTube
Instagram
Contests!
Newsletters
Ask a Question
Share a Post
Categories
Better LivingBudget & FinanceBusiness and LegalComputersConsumer AdviceCoronavirusCraftsEducationEntertainmentFood and RecipesHealth & BeautyHolidays and PartiesHome and GardenMake Your OwnOrganizingParentingPetsPhotosTravel and RecreationWeddings
Published by ThriftyFun.
Desktop Page | View Mobile
Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Contact Us
Generated 2023-05-13 10:12:15 in 3 secs. ⛅️️
© 1997-2023 by Cumuli, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
https://www.thriftyfun.com/Saving-Money-on-Air-Conditioning.html