Air conditioning is
costing consumers more this
summer. The Energy Information
Administration, the statistical
division of the U.S. Department
of Energy, predicts that the
price of electricity will climb
about 2.6 percent during 2007.
Demand for electric power will
grow about 1.5 percent during
the year, which the EIA says is
normal.
This means that if the
typical consumer paid $150 for
electricity to run central air
conditioning in a 2,000
square-foot house in each of the
summer months in 2006, for
example, that bill will be
$153.90 for June, July and
August this year. That might not
seem like a lot of money, but
multiply that by the increase by
the number of households in the
United States and that means
hundreds of millions of dollars.
These costs fall on low
and moderate income homeowners
the most. Diane-Louise Wormley,
who oversees a program to
improve Philadelphia
neighborhoods, said that a key
to making homeownership
affordable for younger buyers is
to make these older houses
energy efficient so that
"everything won't be going to
the gas company."
BASF, which built a
"near-zero energy" house in
Paterson, N.J., is bringing
technology used to create that
home to low and moderate income
neighborhoods in other cities,
according to Jack Armstrong,
business manager for the
German-based chemical company,
who oversaw the project.
Armstrong said that a
zero-energy home can be
"cash-flow positive" to the
homeowner from the "very first
day," because while achieving
this level of performance can
add $45 to $90 in monthly
mortgage payments, it can save
$140 a month that the typical
consumer was paying on utility
bills "before the era of wildly
fluctuating energy costs."
Wormley, Armstrong and
others acknowledge that these
solutions to energy costs and
housing affordability are
long-term, and will do little to
help consumers deal with higher
utility bills this summer.
Some recommendations from
energy experts work better in
some areas of the country than
others. For example, in suburban
and rural areas, nights tend to
be cooler than in the cities of
concrete and blacktop, so
homeowners can open their
windows after sunset and use a
whole-house fan to bring cool
air into the house |
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rather than keeping the air
conditioners cranked.
Some northern areas only
need air conditioning a few days
a year, while in Texas, half the
average homeowner's summer
electric costs are generated by
it, according to the state's
public utilities authority.
Some utility companies
charge higher rates in the
summer or begin tacking on
additional charges to a
customer's bill if he or she
uses more than a certain number
of kilowatt hours during a
30-day cycle.
The key is to find ways to
stay comfortable while keeping
costs down.
According to Ronnie
Kweller of the nonprofit
Alliance to Save Energy in
Washington, there are plenty of
ways to do so. One is to
properly maintain the home's
cooling system so that it
operates as efficiently as
possible. This means cleaning or
replacing air conditioner
filters monthly, or as needed.
Outdoor and indoor air
conditioner coils also must be
kept clean.
Keep your house closed
tight in the daytime to keep
unwanted heat and humidity out.
If practical, ventilate at night
either naturally or with fans.
In addition, Kweller suggested
that a dehumidifier shouldn't be
operated at the same time as the
air conditioner, since the
dehumidifier will increase the
cooling load and force the air
conditioner to work harder.
Shifting energy-intensive
tasks such as laundry and
operating the dishwasher to
off-peak energy demand hours
will help increase electricity
reliability during heat waves,
Kweller said. If you are able to
do so, don't do the dishes and
laundry a little at a time. Full
loads will reduce energy
consumption.
When you do wash clothes
and your machines are old and
inefficient top-loaders, use
cold water. Kweller said that
doing so could save up to $63 a
year and, for those worried
about getting clothes clean,
"detergents formulated for cold
water get clothes just as
clean." For increase dryer
efficiency (and to reduce the
chance of fire) clean the lint
filter in your dryer after every
load.
Keep lamps or TVs away
from the air conditioner
thermostat, she said, because
heat they generate will cause
your air conditioner to run
longer, running up bills
unnecessarily.
When you leave the room,
shut off the lights. The heat
these lights produce also can
increase cooling costs,
according to Kweller.
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