How To Save Electricity in AC?

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If you are feeling the pinch of high electricity bill on your wallet and want to know how to reduce power consumption of your AC and save some electricity bill then this article will help you.

Air conditioners are the most power consuming appliance in a house because of their high power wattage and long operational hours, hence it makes sense that to save your house electricity bill you should try to reduce electricity consumption of your air conditioner.

I have compiled a list of 10 useful tips that you can follow and see considerable reduction in your AC power consumption and thus savings in electricity bill.

Well if you are expecting 50% reduction in your electricity bill then this is not the article for you but I promise follow all 9 of them and you will see a fair amount of savings in your electricity bill without much effort.

10 Best ways to save electricity in AC:

1. Set thermostat at 24 degree Celsius:

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Set AC between 22 – 24 degree Celsius for maximum power savings

Well we all love to cool down our bedroom to such a limit that we need two blankets just to keep us warm.

This habit is the single biggest contributor in your ac high power consumption. Why I say that? Because when you set your thermostat at 16 degree Celsius the compressor works till the room has achieved 16 degree Celsius temperature and once the set temperature is achieved the compressor turns off.

It takes good amount of time and power to reach such low temperature and such low temperature is of no need because we as human beings feel comfortable in temperature range of 20 -24 degree Celsius.

As a rule of thumb the difference between outside temperature and ac thermostat should not be more than 8 degree Celsius for maximum power savings. Well this is not possible in the summer afternoon since temperature in most part of the world goes above 40 degree Celsius but during night this can definitely be achieved since at night even during summer temperature is around 32 degree Celsius, so a room cooled at 24 degree Celsius will be fine for a good night sleep.

2. Clean your AC filters:

When was the last time you cleaned your air conditioner filter? Never right. Most of us ignore the maintenance part of owing an appliance but it plays a vital role in improving the efficiency of the appliance and its operational life.

A filter full of dust acts as a barrier in the flow of air, which results in low air flow rate and makes the compressor work harder to pump fresh cool air which increases your ac electricity consumption.

It is advisable to clean your air conditioners filter at least once every month, this will keep the dust particles at bay and propagate smooth flow of air to the room thereby improving the air flow rate and hence less power consumption.

You can check out the below video from LG on how to clean AC filter.

How to clean AC filter – LG YouTube Channel

3. Keep your house cool:

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Sun reflective coat on roof can reflect much heat and keep your house cool

The more sunlight your house receives the more heated inside air will be. You should try to keep your house as cool as possible you can do that by planting trees around your house to get shade, paint your house exterior wall with sun reflective paint to reflect some heat, cover up your windows with thick drapes, make sure your windows and doors are properly sealed.

If you can reduce your house temperature even by couple of degrees in comparison with outside temperature then electricity bill savings are on the way.

4. Keep the air conditioned room sealed:

Your ac works hard enough to cool the air inside your room, don’t let it escape away easily. Keep your rooms windows closed and have curtains on them, make sure you don’t open your rooms door frequently because every time you open your rooms door fresh warm air from the outside enters the room and this has to be cooled again which is unnecessary work.

5. Turn off appliances when not in use:

Usually there are 5-10 appliances running in a room when the AC is running. Even the smallest of appliance dissipate heat which can heat up the cooled air quickly, so make sure you completely turn off the appliances which you don’t need.

If your room has a TV, which you are not watching then just turn it off (No standby) this will at least reduce one appliance which is heating the room.

Similarly turn off computers, other gadgets which you are not using so they don’t heat up the room fast.

6. Keep compressor unit in shade:

Compressor is basically a machine the compresses the refrigerant and any machine operating at high temperature starts losing it efficiency, hence as long as it’s possible keep the compressor under a shade.

Compressor unit is the place from where the heat is pumped out to the atmosphere. For easy flow of heat the compressor should be at as low temperature as possible.

If the compressor is exposed to direct sunlight then heat dissipation process becomes difficult.

7. Annual maintenance of air conditioner

Get your air conditioner checked every year by a professional. Refrigerant leakage, faulty compressor, low level of refrigerant can spike up the power consumption of your ac and degrade the cooling capacity hence you should get your AC checked at least once a year this will surely give your AC longer life and maximum efficiency.

If you are like me and use air conditioner majorly during summer season then getting your air conditioner checked a month prior the summer starts should be a good time. This way even if there are some faults in your AC there is time to fix it.

8. Use ceiling fans for circulation:

Ceiling fans consume very less power, to give you some comparison a ceiling fan consumes 8% of what an air conditioner consumes.

Ceiling fans help circulate cool air all throughout the house, and that means your AC doesn’t have to work as hard to pump cool air into the room.

If you have a long room then you can use a tower fan to circulate cold air to the far end of the room.

If any of these are not working or you want bigger savings and better cooling then it’s time to change your air conditioner.

9. Control volume of air inside your room:

Air conditioners remove heat from the air inside your room. Therefore, larger the room, larger is the volume of air inside it and more is the electricity required to cool that air.

Many a times we have cabinets inside our room which are open, this increases the volume of air inside your room and now the AC has to cool that much volume of air absolutely unnecessarily.

Hence keep cabinets, cupboard door closed at all times.

10. Replace old AC by new energy efficient AC

You can replace your old AC with energy efficient BEE rated air conditioner which offers better cooling and less power consumption.

A model with a 5 star rating is highly energy efficient and consumes less power than a 4 star model which in turn is better than a 3 star unit and so on. Therefore it is advisable to buy an air conditioner with a 5 star rating to maximize your power savings.

I have compiled a list of most energy efficient split air conditioner available in the market you can check the AC in their corresponding amazon link.

Top 5 most energy efficient AC in India:

  1. Voltas 1 Ton 5 Star Inverter Split AC – Annual power consumption 617 units in a year for 1600 hours of operation [Amazon Link]
  2. Blue Star 1 Ton 5 Star Inverter Split AC – Annual power consumption 599 units in a year for 1600 hours of operation [Amazon Link]
  3. LG 1.5 Ton 5 Star Dual Inverter Split AC – Annual power consumption 835 units in a year for 1600 hours of operation [Amazon Link]
  4. Voltas 1.5 Ton 5 Star Inverter Split AC – Annual power consumption 892 units in a year for 1600 hours of operation [Amazon Link]
  5. Daikin 1.8 Ton 5 Star Wi-Fi Inverter Split AC – Annual power consumption 989 units in a year for 1600 hours of operation [Amazon Link]

Conclusion on AC power saving tips:

To save electricity bill of your air conditioner make sure your AC & compressor does not receive direct sunlight and the room to be cooled is fully sealed and insulated.

Always set thermostat temperature at 24 degree Celsius and clean your air filter every month.

Annual maintenance of your AC by a professional also helps to improve cooling capacity and overall life of your AC.

Reference:


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