5 Air Conditioning Myths Busted

Wondering why your energy bills are so high? Or why your AC just never seems to reach the desired temperature in your home? It may because you’ve been led to believe a common AC myth. Here, we set the record straight on five myths that may be compromising your system’s efficiency.

MYTH 1: The lower you set your thermostat, the faster your AC will cool your home.

You’ve just come inside from a long, hot afternoon of doing yard work and you need AC… fast. A cool 72 degrees will do the trick, but you crank the thermostat down to 65, thinking your system will work harder and faster if the goal temperature is lower. Nope.

Regardless of the thermostat setting, an air conditioner works at a constant speed until it reaches the desired temperature. Setting the temperature too low will only waste energy. So if you want your AC to reach 72 degrees, set the thermostat to 72 degrees. It’ll take the same amount of time to get there as it would if you set it to 65. Your home will be cool soon. In the meantime, grab a glass of ice water.

MYTH 2: Turning off your thermostat when you’re not at home will save you energy.

Many of us have long been led to believe that allowing your home to warm up while you’re gone, and then cranking up the AC when you return home, uses more energy than leaving it a constant, comfortable temperature all day long. False.

In fact, the opposite is true. The longer you leave your thermostat at a higher temperature, the more energy you’ll save. Sure, you may have to wait a little while for you home to cool back down when you get home from work (a problem that can be solved with a programmable thermostat!), but the money you’ll save will make it worth it.

MYTH 3: Ceiling fans cool your home.

Take your hand and fan your face. Did you feel a cool sensation? Probably, but your hand didn’t actually produce any cool air. It simply moved air over your skin, producing the feeling of coolness. Ceiling fans work the same way. They do not produce cool air. They simply circulate the air around a room, creating an emphasized effect of coolness.

So, while turning your ceiling fan on when you’re in your bedroom may make you feel more comfortable, the only thing it’s doing is moving the air around. Many of us think that keeping fans on while we aren’t home will help keep things cool, but all the fans are doing is keeping the air circulating. You could produce the same effect and save on your energy bill by opening a window on a breezy day.

MYTH 4: Closing off vents and registers in certain rooms will reduce your energy bill.

If certain rooms in your home don’t get a lot of action, you may feel inclined to close the vents and registers in them, so more air is directed to the other rooms in your home. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work out so well. A central air conditioner works as a system throughout your entire home. Closing vents will affect how your system sucks in and blows out air, likely throwing things off balance. If your AC is not allowed to distribute air evenly, it’ll have to work harder. This could result in higher energy bills, or worse: a breakdown.

MYTH 5: An oversized AC will do a better job of cooling your home.

It makes sense that an undersized AC would not be able to adequately cool your home, but what’s so bad about an oversized AC? the bigger the air conditioner, the cooler your home, right? wrong.

Sure, an oversized AC may be able to cool your home down faster, but its size will cause it to cycle on and off too frequently, leaving you with higher energy bills. It’s also important to recognize that your AC is responsible for more than just cooling. It also rids your home of humidity. If your system is constantly turning on and off, it won’t be able to remove excess moisture in the air, leaving your home humid and muggy.

The AC Company You Can Trust!

You can’t trust everything you hear or read about air conditioning, but you can trust us! For all your AC needs, the experienced professionals at Sea Coast Air Conditioning have the knowledge and skills to get the job done. Whether you need an emergency AC repair, you’re looking to improve your indoor air quality, or you need help busting your own AC myth, give us a call today!