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Factors Affecting the Costs of Running Your AC

It's important to keep up on our AC system, but it can be difficult when your bills are becoming expensive. If your AC system seems to incur a higher running cost than others, it can be the result of a few different factors, some of which are listed below.

The Energy-Efficiency Rating

The efficiency rating of an AC is the amount of cooling it can give you per unit of electricity. For example, an AC that can use one unit of electricity to cool your house from 80oF to 68oF is more efficient than an AC that can provide the same cooling using two units of electricity. The more efficient an AC is, the less power it will be drawing. An inefficient AC will lead to unnecessarily high energy bills.

The Electricity Rates in Your Area

Local electricity costs probably contribute the largest share of AC running costs. Electricity costs are determined not only be the efficiency of your AC system, but also by the prevailing cost of electricity in your area. Therefore, if electricity is costly in your neighborhood, it follows that your AC's running costs will also be relatively high.

Your Regular Thermostat Settings

The bigger the difference between the thermostat setting and the outside temperature, the more energy your AC will consume to provide the required cooling. This means setting your AC thermostat way lower than the prevailing temperature, especially if you do it on a regular basis, will result in elevated running costs for the AC.

The Weather and Climate of Your Area

As mentioned above, the difference between the outside temperature and the thermostat temperature affects the AC's energy consumption. This makes sense if you consider that a big temperature difference means the AC has to run for a longer time to reach the set temperature. Sometimes, a big temperature difference arises because the outside temperature is unnaturally high. In short, living in a predominantly hot region will lead to relatively high AC running costs.

The Level of Maintenance

Lastly, the level of maintenance you subject your AC to will also influence its running costs. A properly maintained AC system will have lower running costs than a poorly maintained one, and there could be several reasons for this. For example, an AC with blocked filters will be forced to draw more power to force air circulation and maintain the desired temperatures. Apart from that, poorly maintained AC tends to break down frequently, and the repair costs are usually higher than the forgone maintenance costs.

As you can see, some of these are factors that you cannot control while others are within your control. Take control where you can, such as with your air conditioning maintenance, so that you can minimize your AC running costs.


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