Beat the Heat | 3 Ingenious Ways To Shade Your Air Conditioner For Efficient Cooling

8 July 2015
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Shading the outdoor condenser of your air conditioning unit is an excellent way to boost its efficiency and reduce your cooling costs. Adequate shading cools down the air around the air conditioner, so it doesn't work as hard to cool down the air before it blows into your home. When managed poorly, air conditioning costs can be anywhere between 50 and 60 percent of energy bills. Lowering the temperature just by one degree will add 10 percent to the cost of running an air conditioner. Beat the heat smartly and follow these ingenious ways to shade your air conditioner for more efficient cooling in your home.

Install your Air Conditioner on the North Side

It's ideal to install an air conditioning unit on the north-facing side of the home — since it doesn't face the direct impact of the sun, the north side remains coolest through the day. If your air conditioning unit is on the east, south or west side, the scorching rays of the sun will heat the outdoor unit dramatically, forcing you to run the machine harder to cool down the room.

Place Awnings Directly Over Air Conditioning Units

For any outdoor condenser unit to stay cool throughout the day, you may want to install an awning directly above it to prevent it from being in direct contact with the blazing hot sun. This is especially useful during afternoons when the sun is at its hottest. The shade provided by the awning keeps the air conditioning unit cool to ensure that it doesn't need to work as hard to cool the room down and reduces your energy output, which in turn brings down the cost of your electricity bills.

Plant Trees, Shrubs and Bushes

Wherever your air conditioning unit is installed, planting trees, shrubs and bushes around it will provide a layer of protection from the raging heat of the sun. This will propel the air conditioning unit's efficiency upwards. To protect your air conditioning unit adequately, you will need to plant tall trees with expansive foliage. You can even shade your home windows by planting trees to cool down the room — apart from the air conditioner. Ideally, choose trees that rise above your windows to protect them from the sun directly above your house during the day. You should also add bushes and shrubs near the outdoor unit of the air conditioner because they prevent the ground from absorbing the heat of the sun and preserve the coolness in the air above them. More shrubs and trees around your air conditioner means cooler air and more efficient air conditioner functioning.

Shading the air conditioning system will boost your unit's efficiency and will cut your cooling costs dramatically. Contact a company like Adelaide Heating & Cooling-Gawler if you have specific questions about how your air conditioner is functioning.