On the hottest days of the year, it can feel almost impossible to exist without air conditioning. It's great to be able to relax in the sun, but if you want a cool and comfortable home to return to, you'll need to pay for the energy to run it. Unfortunately, it's easy for all that energy to add up and cost you a small fortune. If you feel like your family is shelling out too much for those tolerable temperatures, here are some easy and simple solutions to help.
Invest in Double Glazing
This may involve paying out in the first instance — but over time, double glazing will absolutely reduce your bills. Double-glazed windows help to act as a temperature barrier for your home. As a result, less cold escapes—and less heat sneaks in. Essentially, this means that you can run your air conditioning at a lower setting than you have previously, and your home will still remain as comfortable as it was before. Over time, those savings will really add up.
Turn It Up
This may seem counter-intuitive, but you can make great savings by adjusting your air conditioning temperature up by one or two degrees. You're won't detect much of a difference, and your system won't need to work as hard. Those couple of degrees will add up to big savings over the year. It's like adding a penny to a jar every day — and without you really having to feel a thing. Of course, you can always adjust it back down if the temperature soars, but in truth, you and your family are unlikely to notice.
Draw the Curtains
Okay, so you may not want to spend all day with the curtains drawn, but you may find this a helpful tip on the year's hottest days, especially if you're working in a room with direct sunlight. Any sunlight coming in through the window will heat up your home, and you'll feel a marked difference if you block it out instead. On top of this, it will work similarly to double glazing. With less heat to fight against, your air conditioning won't need to use as much power to lower the temperature of your home, and less power means a lower bill.
For the best results, you'll ideally combine all three of these ideas. That's when you'll really start to see a big difference in your bills. However, even just implementing one tip at a time will produce savings in the long term. That may seriously help to balance the household books.
