How to Buy an Energy-Efficient Air Conditioner

If you want to save money on your energy bills then you need to reduce the amount of money that you spend on heating and cooling your home. During the hottest dog days of summer, it can seem impossible to stop paying to cool your home. However, a small investment now will save you money for many summers to come. The choice to invest in an energy-efficient air conditioner is one that will keep your home cool while reducing your electricity bills drastically. But how do you choose an energy-efficient air conditioner?

The first thing that you want to do when choosing your air conditioner, as you would for nearly any appliance for your home, is to narrow down your options to an Energy Star air conditioner. If your air conditioner doesn’t have an Energy Star rating then it’s not as energy-efficient as you want it to be. This is true whether you are getting an entire new central air conditioning system or just a little room air conditioner. Look for Energy Star.

The most important thing after the Energy Star label is the size of the air conditioner. You want to get one that is big enough to cool your space but not so big that it’s wasting energy. Energy Star has some great tips for choosing the right size room air conditioner. Notably, some rooms require stronger air conditioners than others. For example, the kitchen (which gets hot from cooking as well as from running appliances like the refrigerator) may need a stronger air conditioning unit than the bedroom, which is only used at night.

After choosing the right size of air conditioner, you can look at additional features. You want an air conditioner that has a built-in thermostat so it will automatically shut off when the room gets cool. You want an air conditioner than with multi-directional airflow that will circulate air throughout the entire room. You want an air conditioner that is easy to clean since a clean AC is going to operate most efficiently.

Once you’ve purchased your energy-efficient air conditioner, you still have a little bit more work to do. You want to maximize your savings by making sure that your home is well equipped to save energy. The most important thing is to prevent the cool air from leaking out and the hot air from leaking in by caulking up the windows and sealing up your ducts properly. Next you want to make smart choices about not using heat-generating appliances during the hottest part of the day or right near the air conditioner. Finally, use your energy-conserving habits to limit how often you run the AC and how cold you feel you must keep the house!