Go Green and Don't Get Pinched By High Bills for St. Patrick's Day
With St. Patrick's Day on the way, everyone is putting a little green in their wardrobe, and stores are decorating for the occasion. Leprechauns and their pots of gold will be popping up everywhere in celebration. The symbols of green and pots of gold carry more meaning for homeowners than a cultural holiday. For homeowners, it can bring to mind the eco-friendliness of their homes and the bundle of money they spend monthly on bills.
This year, celebrate St. Patrick's Day a little differently. Reduce heating and cooling costs to save a pot of gold on monthly bills. Luckily, reducing bills also means going a little greener. Here are three top tips to celebrate St. Patrick's Day in style.
Use Ceiling Fans as Intended
The key to reducing any utility bill is to increase its efficiency and lower its usage. Too often, homeowners will avoid this conversation because they assume it means keeping the home too warm or too cool for comfort just to save a little money. Luckily, there are great ways to lower the use of furnaces or air conditioners without suffering.
Learning to use ceiling fans properly is a great place to start lowering bills. In the winter, make sure fans are turning clockwise. This mixes warm air near the ceiling with cooler air below and pushes it downward without causing a draft. Conversely, in the summer, make sure fans are turning counterclockwise. This causes a cooling draft that speeds up the evaporation of sweat to make everyone in the room feel cooler.
Replace Air Filters
Ceiling fans are a great way to reduce HVAC usage and adjust the thermostat so it doesn't run as often. However, increasing the unit's efficiency when it does run is a great way to lower overall bills. The best way to protect efficiency is to replace the air filters.
Air filter replacement allows the furnace and air conditioner to move air more effectively around the home. When filters get clogged by dust and debris, airflow is reduced. While it may not be noticeable to the homeowner, the system will run slightly longer to compensate. This will be reflected on the bill at the end of the month. Airflow is maximized when AC filters are replaced every three months and efficiency increases.
Install a New Smart Thermostat
Maybe the best way to lower heating and cooling bills is to invest in technology that does the work for you. Smart thermostats are the latest development in green technology, and they can easily lower bills without sacrificing home comfort.
Smart thermostats integrate with other smart technology to learn people's movements in and out of the home. It uses this information to form an algorithm that automatically controls the heating and cooling system to control the home's temperature more effectively. While the initial investment may be high, the power that the smart thermostat saves will continue to pay dividends for decades.
About Atlantic Heating & Air Conditioning
Atlantic Heating & Air Conditioning offers tailored solutions for AC repairs and efficient AC operation. They are available 24 hours a day for emergencies and respond quickly to problems. Call today for AC service in Boston, MA.
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