Summer Tips & Tricks to Keep Your Home Cool

Summer heat is rolling in to North Carolina! With the temperature on the rise, your utility bills are probably growing this time of year. But staying comfortable in your home doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg!

Read on for tips from ALM Services to enjoy your home and your utility payments more this summer.

Use Your Gadgets Wisely

In a world of Netflix, cell phones, and laptops, our homes today are full of gadgets and appliances. While today’s technology can help cut the costs of heating and cooling our homes, they can also trip us up.

Devices such as TVs, computers, or lamps can give off a significant amount of heat when in use. If those devices are placed too close to your thermostat, your thermostat will attempt to cool the room further than you intended.

Whenever these devices aren’t in use, it’s important to turn them off and, when possible, unplug them. Turning off the computer will prevent it from heating up the room, so you spend less money cooling it. However, unplugging the device entirely means no extra electricity is spent on ‘vampire power’ (the electricity consumed by electronics that are plugged in, even when powered down).

Change Filters

An air conditioner filter is used to increase the efficiency and longevity of the cooling system by protecting it from dust and airborne particles. It is an integral, yet often overlooked part of the system. These filters work by providing a physical barrier between the air intake and the moving parts of your cooling system. As air is drawn in, airborne particles are caught by the filter and prevented from entering while the air is allowed to pass through, helping you stay cool while keeping the air clean in your home.

We recommend replacing your air filter once a month. If your filter hasn’t been replaced recently, your AC could be struggling with a clogged, dirty filter making your system work harder than it should be – and costing YOU more in energy bills!

Consider a New Air Conditioner

If your bills are skyrocketing during the warmer months, it might be time for a new air conditioner altogether. The real trick is choosing a system that will pay for itself in the savings you reap.

Our qualified project manager takes a good look at your home and asks some questions to determine the best solution for you and your budget. For example, they may ask you the following questions:

• What is the temperature you set for cooling on your thermostat?
• How long are you going to be in your home?
• Do you have any problem areas we need to fix to make you comfortable?

We also run a load calculation on your home, which tells us exactly the proper size of air conditioner to install based on your square footage, ceiling heights, types of windows in your home, and even how much insulation is in your attic, floors, and walls.

All of these factors can help you choose the proper air conditioner that will save you big money on your air conditioning bills AND make you more comfortable.

Looking for more advice on how to save on your heating and cooling costs? Sign up for our monthly newsletter for more helpful tips from the professionals at ALM Services.