| |
| |
|
Home Improvement Information |
|
How to Be Your Air Conditioner's Best Friend
There are a few things you can do to take care of your air conditioner and make its life a little longer and a little easier. How does your air conditioner work? Simply stated, an air conditioning unit removes heat from the air and blows it outside with an outdoor fan. An indoor fan pulls room air across an evaporator coil filled with refrigerant and transfers cool air into your home. Obviously, the movement of air by fans is a big part of the system. That's why it is so important to replace the filter at least once a month. As dust is picked up, it is trapped on the filter, and you would be surprised how quickly the dust accumulates. Trying to pull air through a clogged filter just makes the fan work harder, raising your utility bill. The same is true for the fan in the outdoor unit. Make sure the outside of the unit is away from shrubs and other vegetation growth, and keep the unit as clean and free of leaves and dirt as possible. Provide at least five feet of clearance at the top and two feet on all sides of the unit. When using your air conditioning, the best method is to leave the temperature setting at one comfortable spot. The more you move the temperature up and down, the more work your system must do. If you must move the temperature setting, make the smallest movement possible. Another way to prolong the life of your air conditioning unit is to operate your other appliances wisely. Dishwashers, washers, dryers and stoves all generate heat and humidity indoors. Try to schedule laundry and cooking during the mornings or evenings to avoid taxing your air conditioner in the heat of the day. Use an exhaust fan in the kitchen, and vent your clothes dryer outside to give your air conditioner a hand. Sunshine is also an enemy of air conditioning. Keep drapes and shades pulled to prevent sunlight form streaming into rooms. Over 20 percent of your bill can be due to sunlight. Also, make sure the drain your condensation drips into is clear. Pour a cup of regular laundry bleach down the drain once a month to kill algae and mold and keep the drain running smoothly. Scott Ethridge is a senior air conditioning consultant with R.S. Andrews in Atlanta, Georgia.
MORE RESOURCES: Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 520, exiting |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How To Identify A Quality Interior Shutter 1. Shutters have proper louver tensionThe shutters louvers should be smooth and stay in the desired position throughout the lifetime of the shutter. Laminate Flooring - Cleaning & Maintenance One of the biggest advantages of laminate floors is that they are made to look good for many years with a minimum of effort. Most laminates come with a 10 to 25 years residential warranty against staining, wearing and fading, depending on the brand. Summer Is Here! Consider Tackling Key Home Improvement Projects While The Weather Is Good! Summer time means barbeques, baseball, camping, and yes, Home Improvement Projects! As the weather gets nice and the days get longer so do lists of home improvement projects. Here are a few projects which are best done in the summer maximizing the long days and the good weather!Gardening/Landscaping: Depending on which part of the country you live in it may be too late to plant a garden from seed, but you most likely still have time to get your garden going using starters. What Are Light Fixtures Used For? Light fixtures are something not many of us think about. But, the way we light a room can cause us to feel a certain way or enhance what we want to accomplish in that room. Installing Vinyl Replacement Windows In A Wood Frame Opening When we left off last week, we had removed the old wood sash windows and prepared the opening for the vinyl replacement windows. Now it's time to install your new windows. Installing Vinyl Replacement Sliding Glass Doors Last week I told you how to remove your old sliding glass door in preparation for the installation of the vinyl replacement door. Let's go through the installation procedure for both the Retrofit style and replacement style frames. 10 Common Uses for Baking Soda Baking soda is a great household cleaner. Here are ten ways to clean your home with baking soda:1) Make a paste of baking soda and water and rub on insect bites to relieve itching. Homeowners - Here is a Step by Step Guide to Help You Hire a Quality Home Improvement Contractor Before talking to any contractors the first thing to do is create a budget for the project. Without a budget you will be flying blind and may end up over spending. Plastic Applied to the Picnic Table? There are many styles of picnic tables on the market, but what kind of material is best for durability and safety? Powder coating has been an accepted coated finish for years and there are several reasons why. The coating look great, you can have most any color you want, they are friendly to the environment and efficient to produce. Cordless Impact Wrench - Not the Same Tool as Your Cordless Drill The cordless impact wrench is quickly gaining in popularity among professional mechanics and the hobby mechanic as well. You may be thinking "I already have a cordless drill that I use for impact applications, why do I need a cordless impact wrench as well?". How to Layout Recessed Lighting One of the most important principles to understand when designing a recessed lighting layout is beam angle. In recessed cans, the light is produced in the shape of a cone. Designing Great-looking Window Coverings on a Budget Window coverings are one of the most important focal points in a well-decorated room, but choosing the right ones, at the right price, is a prime consideration for most home decorators. Here are a few tips for creating great-looking window dressings, without breaking your budget in the process:When selecting window coverings, consider the amount of sun exposure the fabrics will receive, and decorate accordingly, if you want to get the longest life out of your window dressings. Buying Home Appliances The Smart Way When you add up all the money that you can spend on home appliances and fixtures it becomes obvious that you need to spend wisely and carefully to keep costs under control. These items tend to be some of the larger ticket purchases around the home and lots of money can be wasted if buying isn't done properly. You Get What You Pay for when it Comes to Above Ground Pools When you think about an above ground pool do you think of the inflatable toy baby pool? That's what I thought and boy was I wrong. In fact, above ground pools are really nice quality and are sometimes the best solution for homeowners. Interior Design For New Homes When decorating or making decorating decisions for new homes, it is important to remember that your major decisions could affect decorating choices for quite a long period of time. Commitment to bold or unusual color treatments before you have actually had the opportunity to consider how such changes will coordinate with your furniture placement is not very advisable in this type of situation. Where Did We Get Clocks From Anyway? A clock is simply a device that measures time. Typical clocks have faces and hands. How to Finance a New Extension? Want to improve the look of your property? Want to add value to your property?The extension plans are ready but the finances are not.Rather than waiting another year why not consider a Home Improvement Loan. All You Need To Know About The Feng Shui Bagua Map The feng shui bagua map is an octagonal shaped map which allows you to evaluate in feng shui terms any living or working space. The feng shui bagua is a very important feng shui tool and indispensable when we wish to harmonize a place and the elements in it. Heated Driveways: Who, What, Where, When, Why, & How What are heated driveways? The obvious answer is, "a driveway that is heated," but what actually heats the driveway? The best driveway heating systems are radiant heating systems, similar to indoor floor heating systems. There are primarily two methods for heating, electric and hydronic. Create a Luxurious Laundry Room Give your home a luxurious feel with a beautiful laundry room. Even if you hate doing the laundry, you cannot deny that there IS a certain amount of satisfaction from transforming a bunch of dirty things into fresh and fragrant clothes! Put these items in your laundry room and feel the difference!-a few plants-adequate shelving-a rug or piece of carpet to stand on-an ironing area-large folding table-music-framed art or prints-a pretty dish to catch clutter and extraneous pocketed items-a trash can (continually clean the lint from the dryer)-GOOD LIGHTING, lamps, etc.
|
| home | site map | contact us |