There are so many myths out there about cooling your home.

Summer is here at last. And while we’re excited about the longer days, the fireworks and the sunshine, the heat can get tiresome pretty quickly, especially now that we’re headed into July. Your home should be a refuge from the heat, and with the HVAC contractors at Tri-Elite Advisors on your side, it can be. We offer professional HVAC services, but we also know how important it is to have the information you need. That’s why we’ve set out to debunk some of the most common myths about home cooling:

Myth #1. Closing vents you aren’t using is a good way to save energy.

This is one of the most widely repeated HVAC myths, and acting on it can do some real harm to your entire system. That’s because closing or blocking vents creates backpressure in your system, which can damage it and shorten its life. Additionally, closing vents doesn’t even save energy; it actually does the opposite. Your central cooling system works by kicking on until the temperature throughout your home reaches whatever temperature you set your thermostat on. Say you close all of the vents to an unused room. That room is going to be a lot warmer than the rest of your home, and your air conditioner will just keep on running until it reaches the correct temperature.

Myth #2. Turning your thermostat way down will cool your home faster.

No matter what temperature you set your thermostats on, your air conditioner will cool your home at the exact same rate. Air conditioners just aren’t designed to cool any faster or slower based on what you set the thermostat on, and if you set it a lot lower in order to try to get your air conditioner to cool your home faster, there’s a chance you might not remember to turn it back up again, wasting energy and making your home too cold for comfort.

Myth #3. Using a fan will lower the temperature in your home.

Fans are great at cooling people, and when you use a fan in conjunction with your air conditioner, you may even feel comfortable enough to turn the thermostat up a degree or two. But that doesn’t mean that the fan is actually lowering the temperature. Fans are valuable tools for cooling people, but running a fan when you’re not there to enjoy its effects won’t make our home any cooler, and will only leave you with higher energy bills.

Many of the myths surrounding home cooling involve trying to make the air conditioner work more efficiently or effectively. And while following these myths won’t make your home any cooler or save you any money, regular air conditioning maintenance can. Our HVAC experts can help to keep your air conditioner working as efficiently and effectively as possible, while also extending its life. If you think that your air conditioner might be due for maintenance, be sure to give us a call.  To learn the truth about more home cooling myths, stay tuned for our next blog.