Installing an air conditioning system is a fantastic idea in the warm summer season to keep your home as cool as it can possibly be.

When the summer heat, powerful and piercing during the day and relentlessly uncomfortable at night, it may be time to get online and start your search for an air-conditioning system.

Having the luxury of an air-con in your home will greatly improve your quality of life in every room of your home. Here’s some tips for finding the right air-con solution for you and your home;

When you’re looking to make a purchase of an air conditioning unit, do plenty of research ahead of time. You want to make sure that you do some of your own due-diligence to discover if your home can support an air-con system. You do not want to overload circuit breakers or damage window frames if they are not able to support the weight of the air conditioner. Find the perfect place in your home that will optimise the performance of the system and allow it to cool the rooms in your home effectively.

Air cons are designed to work in enclosed, sealed environments, meaning that they should operate with the windows and doors of the room closed. If windows are left open, even just a bit, it will make your air-conditioners operation inefficient and less effective, it would be pointless to even have your air conditioner running. Optimize your air conditioner by drawing your curtains to stop the heat from the sunlight entering the room, this assists the aircon by lowering the room temperature a few degrees allowing the air-con to use less energy to get the job done.

Remember to keep the doors in your home closed if you are using a full-home system, if you leave them open, it will let cool air out of your house when you have your air-conditioner running. You want to limit your trips in and out of the house to maximize the amount will air that is being circulated throughout your home.

These are just a few tips for you to assist in the better selection and enhanced operation of your air-conditioner. You want to make sure you are armed with the knowledge you need to make an informed purchase decision as a consumer. You should have a basic understanding of the operating principles of an air-con, how it should be installed and maintained in your home and the start-up costs for both equipment and installation, as well as operating costs in the future.

Before you get onto your search for your unit, have a look at some interesting facts about air-conditioners and a list of common pitfalls to avoid and start your air-con experience off the right way.

Four fun facts about air-conditioners

As we’ve discussed, you can’t think about spending summers without air conditioners nowadays. Air conditioners have become a way of life and without them, life would be pretty uncomfortable in the relentless summer heat. One of the best benefits we get from air-cons is the cool comfort you enjoy inside your home during summer when temperatures hover on higher extreme. Commerce and industry also rely on air-conditioning to keep their operations running, industries that require air-conditioning are, food preservation and processing, pharmaceutical production and storage, pathogen control and several other commercial and industrial interests are highly dependent on air conditioning.

Without the vital support of air conditioners, none of the above can continue their operations. Computers and server rooms are the lifeline of various processes and utilities and they don’t function well without the comfort of air-conditioning. These machines essentially require the support of air cons to keep them working properly and limit overheating that causes breakdowns and lost operating time. Now that we know how critical air-conditioning is in our daily lives, here are 4 fun facts about air-conditioners that you might be interested in knowing.

1. The first air conditioner was not designed for improving human comfort. The first modern air-conditioner was invented by Willis Carrier in the year 1902 for use by a publishing company in Brooklyn. After Carrier graduated from Cornell University, he was employed by Buffalo Forge Company where he was tasked with finding a solution for heat and humidity issues that Sackett-Wilhelms Lithographing and Publishing Company were experiencing in their printing room. The machine he invented managed to keep the humidity and temperature very low thus preventing the printing paper from contracting or expanding. Carrier was well versed with the techniques of heating objects using steam and he used his knowledge to reverse the process. Contrary to the process of sending air over hot coils he sent it over cold water-filled coils. The air that passed through these coils became cooler and greatly helped in controlling temperature and moisture in the environment.

1. The film Industry was one of the first adopters of air-con technology. Air-cons were installed in theaters all across America and Europe and completely changed the viewing experience for movie-goers. As cinemas improved their audience environments, the rise of Hollywood began as people used the cinema to get out of the summer heat, which led to the Hollywood theme of summer being the blockbuster season.

2. Air conditioners have changed the corporate and education landscapes as well. Previously, extreme heat used to cause a shutdown of schools and offices as no one was able to concentrate on their work in the scorching hot periods of the day between 10am and 2pm. The introduction of air-conditioners to learning institutions, corporate and industrial environments have led to higher productivity from students, scholars, and businesses.

3. Air-conditioners have made certain previously inhabitable environments all across the world, livable. The introduction of cool air systems in places like Dubai and India have made life a lot more tolerable for its citizens. This has, in turn, boosted real estate prices and the local economies of the countries as they are able to produce and increase the country’s GDP. Harsh desert conditions used to mean that these countries would not be able to work during large parts of the daytime, now with air-con systems, there are thriving tourist industries in all of these countries as travelers visit and explore what they have to offer in the comfort of air-conditioned environments.

10 Air Conditioning Mistakes to Avoid with your new air conditioner

While using to air conditioners to increase the comfort level in warm climates you tend to increase your energy bill. Air conditioning unit can consume up to 70% of your overall electricity usage and can significantly weigh on your house-hold budget. By adapting to economical usage levels and avoiding inefficiency mistakes, you can save power and money.

Here are our top 10 Air Conditioning Mistakes to avoid if you want efficient and effective operation from your system.

1. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is buying an air conditioning unit that is too big in capacity for your space required. This increases energy consumption and adds to your monthly bill, while not really adding any advantage in terms of cooling your home.
2. Installing your unit near a heat source such as a furnace or sunny area can severely affect the cooling effectiveness and efficiency of your air-con. The unit will have to work harder and in the process, it will  consume more energy.
3. When installing your air conditioner system, clear the area behind its rear passage and make sure that it is not obstructed by shrubs and foliage. If the passage is blocked, then you will experience ventilation issues and condenser coils will get clogged with dirt, making them ineffective.
4.  Undertake regular maintenance schedules for your air-con unit to keep it working efficiently. Ignoring this aspect may reduce its operating life and drop efficiency.
5. Do not run an air-con unit when you are not at home, this is a senseless waste of energy. Air-cons are able to cool down the air in your home within minutes of you switching them on, so save the energy and your budget and don’t leave them running while you are away.
6. If you have a central air-con system in your home, then do not close any duct vents in rooms that are not being used. This changes the operating pressure of the system and can cause it to break down or reduce its operating lifespan. If you do not want the system to operate in a specific room, then call an air-con expert for some advice before you do so.
7. Adjust the level of cooling as the day progresses. The raging heat of midday is quite a bit stronger than in the morning or late afternoon, program your air-con to operate at the right temperature during the day and save on the energy the system uses during its daily operation cycle.
8. Avoid keeping energy emitting appliances like tv’s, stereos, lamps and other such appliances near the unit as their heat can cause the thermostat to get incorrect temperature readings and cause ineffective operation of the system.
9. Add a fan into the mix. While an air-con is effective at cooling the air, any boost you can give to circulating that air in your home can help reduce the energy required by your air-con system. Keep your fans running and save on the expense of cooling your home this summer.
10. Exhaust fans are not necessary for air-conditioned environments, they actually work against and aircon and disrupt the circulation of the cooled, sometimes exhausting that instead of the spent air. So make sure that exhaust fans are limited to use in the bathroom only.

Following these tips will give you extended life on your air-con system and greatly reduce your energy requirements for cooling your home. When you have your air-con installed and ready to go, make sure you follow them to start your air-con experience off with the right operating habits.