Skip to footer Williamson's Heating and Cooling Menu TIPS & RECOMMENDATIONS MARCH 6, 2019 BY COOLTUCSON Seasonal Tips There are quite a few things that can be done to help mitigate the cost of home heating and cooling: Have your A/C and Heating system’s serviced in the spring and in the fall to be ready for the upcoming season Make sure that you seal off leaks around doors and windows Make sure that any cracks and gaps in the brick work mortar on the home’s exterior are repaired properly You can shut off a room that is not being used and close the register You can seal your ducts and registers (tip: don’t use “duct” tape) Adjust the temperature on your water heater down depending on the season Install a low flow showerhead Increase your attic insulation and insulate the floor joists Change your furnace and or A/C air filter monthly to help maintaining optimum performance. A healthy HVAC system means fewer break downs and low electric bills. These tips should help better control the indoor temperature, as well as decrease the natural gas and electric usage required to keep your home at a comfortable temperature. That being said, there are two things that we recommend EVERYONE do immediately before anything else. Those are: Buy a programmable digital thermostat. Program it effectively Programmable Digital Thermostats are the Best way to Cut your Heating Bills It’s been estimated that for each degree you lower your thermostat, you can expect to save 3% on your heating costs. I’ve calculated that installing and programming a digital programmable thermostat has saved about 20% on heating costs. According to Energy Star, installing an Energy Star programmable digital thermostat can cut your heating and cooling costs by $180 per year. If you purchase a $80 device (which is about the current average cost), that will earn you a return on investment of 300% in just the first year and nothing but sweet, pure savings after that. Filed Under: Tips & recommendations FEBRUARY 6, 2019 BY COOLTUCSON Energy Savings Home Heating Cut annual heating bills by as much as 10 percent per year by turning your thermostat back 10 percent to 15 percent for eight hours per day. Kitchens are particularly vulnerable to excessive warming, especially from the extra heat generated by cooking. Adjust the kitchen vents, if you have them, until the room is comfortable. Try adjusting upstairs vents in a two-story home to counter the effect of warm air rising from the first floor. Install a programmable thermostat and set it to accurately follow your schedule. For details, follow theseProper Use Guidelines. Home Cooling During the summer, adjust the temperature 1°-2° per week to a higher setting, allowing your body to adjust to the new temperature. Raising the temperature just a couple of degrees can cut your cooling costs by as much as five percent. Start by setting your air conditioner thermostat to 78°F or higher – health permitting – when you’re at home. Install a programmable thermostat and set it to accurately follow your schedule. Proper Use Guidelines for Programmable Thermostats Through proper use of a programmable thermostat (using the four pre-programmed settings) you can save about $180* every year in energy costs. Rules of Thumb for Proper Use: Keep the temperature set at its energy savings set-points for long periods of time (at least eight hours), for example, during the day, when no one is at home, and through the night, after bedtime. All thermostats let you temporarily make an area warmer or cooler, without erasing the pre-set programming. This override is cancelled automatically at the next program period. You use more energy (and end up paying more on energy bills) if you consistently “hold” or over-ride the pre-programmed settings. Units typically have two types of hold features: (a) hold/permanent/vacation; (b) temporary. Avoid using the hold/permanent/vacation feature to manage day to day temperature settings. “Hold” or “vacation” features are best when you’re planning to be away for an extended period. Set this feature at a constant, efficient temperature (i.e. several degrees warmer temperature in summer, several degrees cooler during winter), when going away for the weekend or on vacation. You’ll waste energy and money if you leave the “hold” feature at the comfort setting while you’re away. Cranking your unit up to 90 degrees or down to 40 degrees, for example, will not heat or cool your house any faster. Most thermostats begin to heat or cool at a set time, to reach setpoint temperatures sometime thereafter. Units with adaptive (smart/intelligent) recovery features are an exception to this rule — Adaptive recovery units are constantly calculating the amount of time required to heat or cool the house, so that it reaches that temperature when the homeowner programmed it. By “examining” the performance of the past few days the thermostat can keep track of the seasons. In this way, your house is always at the comfort levels when occupied, but saving the most energy when unoccupied. Many homes use just one thermostat to control the whole house. If your home has multiple heating or cooling zones, you’ll need a programmed setback thermostat for each zone to maximize comfort, convenience and energy savings throughout the house. If your programmable thermostat runs on batteries, don’t forget to change the batteries each year. Some units will indicate when batteries must be changed. Filed Under: Tips & recommendations Footer ABOUT US We have been proudly serving Tucson and surrounding areas since 1991! Click here to learn more about us. We are Licensed, Bonded and Insured License Number: ROC 171621 K-39 520-886-3229 LOCATIONS Tucson: (520) 886-3229 Oro Valley / Marana / Saddle Brooke: (520) 790-4787 Vail / Rita Ranch / Green Valley: (520) 571-6007 Mailing Address Williamson’s Heating & Cooling 2110 South Alvernon Way Tucson, AZ 85711 COPYRIGHT © 2021 WILLIAMSON'S HEATING AND COOLING · LOG IN