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Energy Saving Tips: Improving the Performance
of an Existing Heating & Air Conditioning System
Even if you aren't ready to go out and buy a state-of-the-art, high-efficiency heating system, you can still realize substantial savings by boosting the efficiency and performance of your present system. For starters, proper maintenance can have a big effect on fuel bills and should be performed on a routine basis.
- Clean or replace air filters regularly every 30 to 60 days
minimum, more often during periods of peak usage.
- Caulk and weather-strip to seal off all windows, doors
and air leaks.
- Seal your ducts. In homes heated with warm-air heating,
ducts should be inspected and sealed to ensure adequate airflow and eliminate
loss of heated air. It is not uncommon for ducts to leak as much as 15-20%
of the air passing through them. And, leaky ducts can bring additional dust
and humidity into living spaces. Thorough duct sealing costs several hundred
dollars but can cut heating and cooling costs in many homes by 20%. Consider
adding insulation to your duct system.
- Install adequate insulation to conserve energy - R-30 in
ceiling, R-11 in walls and floor.
- Make sure your fireplaces have tight fitting dampers and
keep it closed when not in use.
- Install storm doors and windows.
- Clean registers. Warm-air supply and return registers should
be kept clean and should not be blocked by furniture, carpets, or drapes.
- Keep baseboards and radiators clean and unrestricted by
furniture, carpets, or drapes.
- Bleed trapped air from hot water radiators. Follow prescribed
maintenance for steam heat systems, such as maintaining water level, removing
sediment, and making sure air vents are working. Check with your heating system
technician for specifics on these measures and use caution: steam boilers
produce high-temperature steam under pressure.
- Tune up your system. Gas-fired systems and heat pumps should
be tuned up and cleaned every year. Regular tune-ups not only cut heating
costs, but they also increase the lifetime of the system, reduce breakdowns
and repair costs, and cut the amount of carbon monoxide, smoke, and other
pollutants pumped into the atmosphere by fossil-fueled systems.
- Check for wasted fan energy. If your furnace is improperly
sized or if the fan thermostat is improperly set, the fan may operate longer
than it needs to. If you're getting a lot of cold air out of the warm-air
registers after the furnace turns off, have a service technician check the
fan delay setting.
- Call or submit an appointment
request to schedule preventive maintenance for your system before
each seasonal change. Toll-free 800-696-1971.
- Upgrade your system to a more efficient system.
Also consider the following tips for operating your system for maximum efficiency:
- Thermostats. Turn down the thermostat at night and when
you're away from home. In most homes, you can save about 2% of your heating
bill for each degree that you lower the thermostat for at least 8 hours each
day. Turning down the thermostat from 70°F to 65°F, for example, saves about
10% ($100 saved per $1,000 of heating cost). Of course, you can use a good
programmable thermostat to automate this process. You can expect to recover
the cost of the thermostat in the first year or so.
- Aquastats. The thermostat that regulates the temperature
of a hot water boiler is called an aquastat. Normally, the aquastat keeps
water in the boiler around 160-180ºF. In milder weather, however, you don't
need your boiler that hot. The aquastat can be set manually to 140ºF (120ºF
with condensing boilers), reducing fuel consumption by 5-10%. The aquastat
control is usually located in a metal box connected to the boiler. If you
can't locate it, ask your service technician for assistance. Your technician
can also provide information on modulating aquastats (or outdoor resets) that
automatically adjust water temperature depending on the outdoor temperature.
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