In many parts of the world, summer looms as a pricy threat, bringing large, air conditioning-driven utility bills. No one wants to live without climate control, but paying high sums of money for cool temperatures is no fun. Discover four ways you can save money on air conditioning costs this summer.

My husband has been in the HVAC field for over 3 decades and understands the cooling ins and outs.

Replace Your Air Filters Monthly

Deteriorating air conditioning filters impact your utility bills. As the summer wears on and your air conditioning use rises, your filters will start to accumulate dirt and can break down.

To avoid that problem, check your air filters each month during the summer. The rule of thumb is to change your filters once a month. A simple filter replacement can head off thousands of dollars in charges and costly service calls. Colorfil is the air filter specifically made for pet homes/odors that change from hot pink to yellow to let you know they need changing. Special chemical reactions are involved leading to the most forward thinking, NASA-approved smell and color technologies.

This is a true case of spend a little each month to save a lot!

You should also be cleaning your dryer vent once a month (not the one in the dryer but the actual vent)

Be Conservative With Air Conditioning Use

DO NOT turn off the air conditioning when you aren’t home.

At night, or if you’re traveling away from the house for an extended period and you don’t have pets who need the temperatures to stay cool, turn the temperature setting up a little. If you normally keep it on 68 degrees when home, turn the temperature to 72 degrees. It will still run and maintain the 72 degrees but it won’t need to work as hard when you get home. When it’s hot outside and you turn your air OFF, your house will reach the outside temp and if there’s humidity it will also get humid. Now if you turn the air on and the temp in your house is 80 degrees, the air has to work to get rid of the humidity as well as bring the temp to where it needs to be. It will run just as much or longer if you shut it off when you’re not there.

Use a Programmable Thermostat

Managing your thermostat in practice is something of a chore. You have to remember to adjust the thermostat every day before you leave the house and adjust it when you return home. Inevitably, you’ll make mistakes, and forget. But if the mistake involves forgetting to turn down the thermostat before going on vacation, you could be faced with a substantial bill.

Programmable thermostats can bypass this hassle, letting you plan your cooling needs ahead of time. Newer models allow you to control your climate remotely through smart devices.

*** Not all programmable thermostats are compatible with all systems.

Check and Clean Air Conditioning Vents

The best systems won’t work properly if your air conditioning vents dirty. Vents accumulate their own layer of dust, accumulations that can keep your home’s air conditioning system from cooling a room optimally. Be sure to regularly remove dust and debris from your air conditioning vents and vent covers.

Your Outside Air Conditioning Unit

Keep your outside unit free from “stuff” around it. Do not put a fence around it either. This sucks in the air to bring it through the house and you don’t want it restricted!

Yearly Maintenance

You should have your air conditioning serviced once a year to keep everything cleaned, checked, and up to date.

When summer ends and winter beckons, you may find yourself missing the heat and humidity. But in the midst of summer weather, you’ll want to use your air conditioning system to keep cool without guilt. When you trim your cooling expenses, you won’t need to sweat over high utility bills to keep your family comfortable.

Do you have any other tips?