Chris Warnes
With increasingly hot summers coming to Australian homes each year, it is time to think about cooling options. Some choices for instant relief range from high-powered fans to home-ducted air conditioning systems.
Research from reveals that 20% of Australians leave their airconditioner on while no one’s home, bumping up their energy bills unnecessarily.
We asked, to share five ways that Aussie households can cut their energy bill in half this summer.
1. Choose solar power and store your energy
Solar and home battery systems capture and store solar energy for use anytime—day, night, or during outages. Transition your home to stored energy instantly, reducing grid dependence and lowering your electricity bills, by powering your home from solar energy. Store energy when grid prices are low and use it when they rise with products like Powerwall 3 from Tesla. This compact battery with an integrated solar inverter helps you maximize savings, reduce bills, and power your home efficiently.
2. Only cool the rooms you use
Ensuring you have the appropriate home cooling system type is a vital step in minimising energy wastage. Low-cost and easy to install wall-mounted split air conditioning systems are a fantastic option for cooling commonly used spaces, such as the living room or bedroom, rather than paying to cool the whole home. This is a much more efficient way of keeping cool as compared to, for example, full-home cooling via multi-split or ducted systems.
(Photography: Villa Styling / Styling: Kylie Roche)
3. Pick the right temperature
With Australians’ concern around the cost of energy increasing, it makes sense for us to take a few simple steps to keep those electricity bills as low as possible. Pay attention to your temperature settings. This can be a cause of many a family argument, so if you’re battling for control of the temperature gauge, remind your home companions that for every 1°C change in a thermostat setting, it’s estimated that our heating or cooling bill rises by around 10%
4. Regular system maintenance
Regular maintenance will improve the performance and extend the life of your heating and cooling systems. To ensure your system is operating with maximum efficiency, clean your unit as instructed by the manufacturer and have it serviced regularly and choose models with easy-clean features, which will allow for hassle-free maintenance between servicing.
As a general rule of thumb, the more a fan runs and the dirtier the conditions, the more often the filters require cleaning. However, humidity can also play a role because the more moisture in the air, the more dust can adhere to the filter, fan blade and indoor coil. This will reduce the amount of air that the fan moves. The less air the fan moves means that the unit can go into fault or cause the system to run at a reduced capacity.
5. Remember to close the door
“Air conditioners work most efficiently when in closed spaces, so it’s best to position your device far away from the front door and away from windows where sunlight regularly enters,” says Atesh Mani, Mitsubishi Electric Australia Air Conditioning National Product Manager. “This will ensure that the cool air continues to circulate throughout the house without uncontrolled amounts of heat entering.” Sunlight streaming in through the windows raises the temperature of a room so it’s a good idea to invest in some light blocking curtains or shade trees for outside of windows too. A door snake to keep the hot air out is another great cost effective option.
5. Selecting the right rooms
If you’re thinking about upgrading your heating or cooling, the first decision to make is to decide which room to place the heating or cooling source. Attempting to heat or cool your whole home will see energy bill costs spike, so it’s best to position a fireplace, heater or air conditioner in the rooms where you spend the most amount of time. With a fully integrated solar inverter, Powerwall can efficiently store solar energy and convert it into electricity to power your home. This means you can capture more of the solar energy your system is already generating during the day and use energy to power your home for free at night.
