One of the biggest challenges the planet is facing today is environmental degradation. In the recent past, we have seen an increase in the number of energy-consuming appliances in our homes. One of these appliances is the air conditioner. These appliances run on electricity, which increases your home’s carbon footprints.
Fortunately, there are ways you can reverse the harmful effects of air conditioning to our environment. We spoke to Brett from Air Con Sunshine Coast on this matter, and he told us some of the best tips on reversing the harmful effects of air conditioners on our environment. Here are the main tips he gave us:
1. Right AC Unit Size
The first tip to reversing the harmful effects of air conditioning is buying the right size of the AC unit for your home. One of the biggest mistakes homeowners make is buying too small or too large air conditioners for their house. When the air conditioner is too large, you waste a lot of energy hence increasing pollution. Similarly, when you have a small ac unit, it works harder hence reducing its efficiency. This means it is consuming more energy to condition the air in the room. With the right AC size, the unit consumes minimum fuel to air-condition the room.
2. Choose Energy Efficiency
There is a huge relationship between air con’s fuel consumption and its efficiency. Appliances with high efficiency have lower fuel consumption. Therefore, working with an energy-efficient air conditioning unit helps to reduce the amount of electricity needed to keep the room conditioned. Australia has all the ac units sold in its market energy rated. The higher the number of energy stars, the high the efficiency of the unit. That means lower environmental pollution.
3. Maintain Your Unit
Another way you can reverse environmental damages from air conditioning is by maintaining the unit. After using the AC unit for a while, the moving parts will start wearing off. As the wear and tear of the parts continue, the unit’s efficiency will start dropping. This means the unit will start consuming more energy to cool the room. But with timely and proper maintenance, you will help to improve the unit’s efficiency hence reduce energy consumption. That’s another effective way of reversing environmental degradation.
4. Promote Green Cover
Whatever you do, the air conditioning unit will always pollute the environment. Every time you power the unit on, it consumes electrical energy. This means fossil fuel is burned hence contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. But you can reverse the harmful effects to the planet by promoting green cover. Planting more trees in your garden or forest will go a long way to reducing the carbon gas in the atmosphere. Planting more plants such as herbs and vegetables in your garden will go along to reducing harmful carbon gases in the air.
5. Replace AC Filters
The other thing you must adhere to is replacing your unit’s filters. These are essential parts of an aircon that can determine the amount of energy the unit consumes. Filters are used to trap dust and debris in the air. That’s why they get clogged quickly, especially if the unit is installed in a dirty and dusty place. When clogged, they make the unit work harder. This means it burns more fossil fuel hence increased your carbon footprint. Air filters should be replaced every three months to avoid clogging.
6. Use AC Only When Necessary
The other trick you can use to reverse the harmful effects of air conditioning on our environment is using the appliance only when necessary. There are many instances when you don’t need to have the AC unit on. A good example is when you are not in the room. Similarly, you don’t need the house air-conditioned during the night. In addition to that, you might also need to switch off the unit if the weather is cold or windy. In all these cases, you will be able to reduce the amount of fossil fuel burned.
7. Use Right Refrigerant
There are several refrigerants used in the air conditioning units. However, some of these refrigerants are environmentally hazardous. Hydro-chlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), such as R22 are some of the most harmful refrigerants. That’s why the industry is phasing them out in 2020. Therefore, if you notice that your air con is reading R22, then you are using a refrigerant that is very harmful to the environment. The most recommend refrigerants are the Hydro-fluorocarbons (HCFCs), including R410A and R134. Since they do not have chlorine, they are safe for the environment.
8. Fix Refrigerant Leaks
One of the ways that air conditioning units damage the environment is by releasing harmful gases from the leaking refrigerant. Some of the refrigerant used in these units cause severe damages to the environment. Chlorofluorocarbons and hydro-chlorofluorocarbons refrigerants produce some of the most harmful gases to the environment. So, make sure that you have all refrigerant leaks fixed. We also recommend that you carry out frequent leak tests.
9. Solar Powered Air Conditioning
You can make a huge impact in reversing air con environment damages by investing in solar air conditioning systems. Instead of exerting demand on fossil fuel-generated electricity, you can use solar energy to power the unit. What you need is to invest in solar panels to harvest natural solar energy and store it in your electrical power bank, i.e., batteries. You can then use the store electricity to power your ac unit. This means zero fossil fuel hence reduced global warming impact.
10. Use Geothermal Cooling
Although geothermal heat pumps are used for heating, they can actually be used for cooling purposes. These pumps work by removing heat from the room using underground loops of pipes and deposit it to the ground, which is at a steady 12.778°C or 55F. The system uses an underground closed loop with pipes filled with fluid. The fluid in the pipe collects heat from the room and deposit it in the ground, and you will experience cold air blowing in the room. This form of air conditioning uses a fraction of the energy that a typical air conditioning unit can use.
In conclusion, it is possible to air conditioning your home with a minimal harmful effect on the environment. These are some of the best ways that you can reverse the harmful effects of air conditioning to our environment. However, if you need professional air conditioning help, kindly contact:
Air Con Sunshine CoastCaloundra
5/1 Levuka Ave, Caloundra 4551 QLD
Maroochydore
9/13 Norval Ct, Maroochydore 4558 QLD
Phone: (07) 5646 3628
https://www.google.com/maps?cid=9586428692230985607
