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How You Can Cut Your Las Vegas Heating & Air Conditioning Costs

Residents of Las Vegas know how much energy bills can add up during the colder or hottest parts of the year – especially in summer when temperatures regularly reach triple digits. You might find yourself cringing when the energy bill comes in. These energy saving tips will help you find out how you can save energy—and money—with our simple energy saving tips for Las Vegas homeowners!

Here are some energy saving tips for improving efficiency:

Schedule preventative maintenance two times per year. This ensures your air conditioning and heating units perform at optimum levels.
Invest in a programmable, easy-to-use thermostat like the Nest. Did you know that can save as much as 10%+ a year on your heating and cooling bills?
Clean or replace filters monthly. Or, better yet, purchase a four-inch media filter that provides better IAQ that you don’t need to replace as often.
Close blinds and shades during summer months. This keeps natural sunlight from heating your rooms. During winter months, open south-facing draperies and shades to allow sunlight to help warm your home.
Add humidity to your home during the heating season. You will feel more comfortable at lower temperatures.
Set all ceiling fans in reverse during summer months. Today, most ceiling fans use the same electricity as a 100-watt light bulb.
Keep a minimum of two-foot clearance of shrubs/bushes/plants from your AC unit(s). This will allow for proper air flow to your unit.
Install shrubs or trees at least three feet or more away from your AC unit(s) to shade the condenser if possible, but do not block airflow. An AC unit operating in the shade uses up to 10% less electricity than the same one in the sun.
Insulate accessible heating ducts in unheated areas, such as the attic. Insulation minimizes heat loss during the winter.
Minimize the use of bathroom fans and kitchen hood fans in the winter. A bathroom fan can suck all of the hot air out of the average house in little more than an hour.
Make sure you properly insulate and seal your home.
Don’t set your thermostat at a colder temperature setting than normal when you turn on your air conditioner. It will not cool your home any faster and could result in excessive cooling and unnecessary expense.
Keep lamps away from the thermostat.

Education – Terms and Definitions for the HVAC Industry

Your definition of “comfort” may be different from your neighbor’s. Understanding some key terms and energy saving tips makes your search for improved heating and air conditioning efficiency and performance less confusing and more effective.

Advanced Reciprocating Compressor: A type of compressor that uses a more efficient process for compressing refrigerant for better cooling efficiency.

AFUE: (Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency) tells how much energy your system converts to heat. For example, an AFUE of 90 means that 90% of the fuel is warming your home, while the other 10% escapes as exhaust with the combustion gases.

Air Handler: A device that conditions and circulates air as part of a heating, ventilating, and air–conditioning (HVAC) system. An air handler is usually a large unit that resembles a furnace. It also runs off electric and works with heat pumps residentially.

BTU: (British Thermal Unit) BTU is a measure of the heat given off when fuel is combusted. Or for cooling, it’s a measure of heat extracted from your home. One BTU is equal to the heat given off by a wooden kitchen match.

Capacity: The amount a heating or cooling system takes to heat or cool a given amount of space. For heating, this is usually expressed in BTUs. For cooling, it is measured in tons (12,000 BTU’s in a ton of cooling).

Carbon Monoxide (CO): An odorless, colorless, and toxic gas. Because it is impossible to see, taste, or smell the toxic fumes, CO can kill you unknowingly. At lower levels of exposure, CO causes mild effects that are often mistaken for the flu. These symptoms include headaches, dizziness, disorientation, nausea, and fatigue. The effects of CO exposure can vary greatly from person to person depending on age, overall health, and the concentration and length of exposure.

Condenser Coil: The high-pressure, high-temperature refrigerant gas leaves the outdoor compressor and enters the outdoor condensing coil where it cools to a liquid state by the condensing unit fan that blows outside air across the condensing coil or by immersion of the condensing coil in cooling water in some designs. The coil then produces and transfers heat to the outside by a fan. The fan blows outside air across the condensing coil. The liquid refrigerant is then able to return to the indoor components for cooling and dehumidifying the building interior.

Digital Thermostat: An electronic thermostat powered by electric, battery, or both. It has a digital screen which displays temperature and other information. It’s accurate to +/–0.1°C. It ensures reliable and efficient temperature regulation and can be either programmable or non-programmable.

Down-flow: A type of furnace that takes cool air in from the top, heats it, and blows warm air out of the bottom. This is common when a furnace is located in a slab home.

ECM: (Electronically Controlled Motor) is an ultra-high efficient DC driven motor. It is much more efficient than an AC motor. This allows you to circulate and filter the air in your home continuously for about the same cost as operating a standard light bulb.

Electronic Air Cleaner (EAC): Filters out large particles and contaminants from indoor air. It then electronically pulls out tiny particles that have been magnetized, such as viruses and bacteria. It finally draws them to a collector plate.

Evaporator Coil: Part of a split-system air conditioner or heat pump located indoors. The evaporator coil cools and dehumidifies the air. It converts liquid refrigerant into a gas that absorbs the heat from the air. The coil then carries the warm refrigerant through a tube to the outdoor unit (condenser coil).

Fan Coil: An indoor component of a heat pump system, used in place of a furnace. It provides additional heating through electric elements on cold days when the heat pump cannot provide adequate heating.

Freon: A trademark used for a variety of nonflammable gaseous or liquid fluorinated hydrocarbons employed primarily as working fluids in refrigeration and air conditioning and as aerosol propellants.

HVAC: Term used for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning.

HSPF: (Heating Seasonal Performance Factor) is a measure of the heating efficiency of a heat pump. The higher the HSPF number, the more efficiently the heat pump heats your home.

Horizontal Flow: A type of furnace that you install on its side. It draws in air from one side, heats it, and sends the warm air out the other side. Most often used for installations in attics or crawl spaces.

Humidifier: A piece of equipment that adds water vapor to heated air as it moves out of the furnace. This adds necessary moisture to protect your furnishings and reduce static electricity. Humidity levels should range from 35–50%.

Load Estimate: A series of studies that reveal the heating or cooling requirements of your home. An energy load analysis uses information such as the square footage of your home, window or door areas, insulation quality, and local climate. With these, it determines the heating and cooling capacity needed by your furnace, heat pump, or air conditioner. When referring to heating, it’s called a heat loss analysis. That’s because a home’s heating requirements are determined by the amount of heat lost through the roof, entry ways and walls. When referring to cooling it’s considered a heat gain.

Matched System: A heating and cooling system that includes products that have been certified to perform at promised comfort and efficiency levels when used together, and used according to design and engineering specifications.

Natural Gas: This energy fuel is a mixture of naturally occurring combustible gases that you find underground and is widely used for heating and cooking, as well as for a variety of industrial applications.

Operating Cost: The day-to-day cost of running your home comfort equipment, based on energy use.

Payback Analysis: The overall measure of the efficiency and value of your home comfort system. By combining your purchase price and ongoing operating costs, a payback analysis determines the number of years required before monthly energy savings offset the purchase price.

R410A Refrigerant: An environmentally sound refrigerant designed to protect the earth’s ozone layer. Federal law requires all manufacturers phase out ozone depleting refrigerants within a certain date. It has approval from the US Environmental Protection Agency as a replacement for Freon 22*.

SEER: (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) is a measure of the cooling efficiency of your air conditioner or heat pump. The higher the SEER number, the more efficient the system is at converting electricity into cooling power.

Setback Thermostat or Programmable Thermostat: A thermostat with built-in memory. You can program it for different temperature settings at different times of the day. Scroll Compressor: A specially designed compressor that works in a circular motion, as opposed to up-and-down piston action. It has fewer moving parts and provides smooth, efficient, and reliable operation.

Split System: Refers to an air conditioner or heat pump that has components in two locations. Usually, one part of the system is located inside (evaporator coil) and the other is located outside your home (condenser coil).

Two-Stage Furnace: A furnace that can operate on both low and high heat settings. Your furnace typically uses low heat around 80% of the time. Low stage heat has a lower BTU output and runs quieter.

Up-flow: A type of furnace that draws air in from the bottom, heats it, and then blows the warmed air out the top into the duct work. You would usually install this type of furnace in a basement or an out-of-the-way closet.

Ventilator: A ventilator captures heating or cooling energy from stale indoor air and transfers it to fresh incoming air.

Zoning: A way to increase your home comfort and energy efficiency by controlling when and where heating and cooling occurs in a home. You use thermostats to control operating times of the equipment. You use dampers to direct airflow to certain parts or “zones” of the home.