How to know when to put the aircon on
It’s the eternal debate – how to know when to put the aircon on – but by taking a few minutes to familiarise yourself with the controls of your air conditioning, you can keep your property more comfortable in future while improving your aircon efficiency too.
Theoretically of course, knowing when to put the air conditioning on should be easy, as it’s equipped with all the sensors and switches you need to automate the process and keep the room at a steady temperature at all times.
But if you don’t use the room at all times, that’s when things can get complicated, so here’s our rundown of how to know when to put the aircon on for maximum efficiency and maximum comfort too.
Set the target temperature
Set a comfortable target temperature for your air conditioning and that’s half the battle already won.
Remember that women typically feel 2-3 degrees colder than men, so you may have to meet in the middle on a temperature that feels comfortable to everyone.
Also bear in mind that ‘comfortable’ can depend on factors like humidity, time of year, time of day and what you’re wearing, so make sure you don’t always turn to the thermostat too quickly just because the sun goes behind a cloud or you’re not wearing a jumper.
Set a timer program for home aircon
Air conditioning timer programs are a way to adjust the settings over the course of the day, allowing you to turn the aircon off automatically during working hours or any other time you regularly spend out of the house.
You might also want to change the settings for while you sleep – many of us feel a different temperature once we’re in bed, and you might not notice a few degrees either way when you’re sleeping.
This is one of the most direct ways to save energy and improve aircon efficiency, by switching it off completely when you don’t need to change the temperature of your property or when you won’t notice the difference.
Timer programs for business air conditioning
For businesses, the reverse is true – set a timer program so that the air conditioning is ONLY on during working hours, and you could save as much as two thirds compared with leaving it running 24 hours a day, plus an extra 28% at weekends.
If your workplace air conditioning normally runs 24/7, cutting it down to eight hours a day Monday to Friday could save a massive 76% on your energy bills and associated carbon emissions.
The numbers speak for themselves – so whether at home or at work, take a fresh look at your air conditioner’s controls and see how much you can improve your efficiency.