Summers tend to hit us like a ton of bricks, with high temperatures and higher humidity making our lives miserable for months on end. A reliable air conditioner is your best friend in such circumstances, making your home cool and comfortable no matter how high the mercury climbs. This can be more than a matter of comfort during the hottest days. It’s often a matter of health as well, since even a few hours without air conditioning can turn your home into an oven.
Because of that, it’s imperative to keep your system running, which in turn means that higher monthly costs are inevitable to a certain extent. That’s to be expected, of course, since you need to run your system more often in the summer anyway. But just because you’re paying more for the privilege doesn’t mean you can’t take steps to cut down on those high bills. Some steps simply involve more judicious use of your system, and may include habits you’re practicing already (setting the thermostat a few degrees higher than you might otherwise, for instance, or opening the windows in the evening and running the fan instead of the air conditioner).
If you’re in the market for something more extensive to help with those air conditioning bills, we recommend the installation of a zone control system in your centralized AC. It can do wonders for your bottom line, as well as providing a few other benefits your household will likely appreciate a great deal. Here’s a quick breakdown.
What Is It?
A zone control system is essentially a series of shutters placed in the ducts of your home at key points. Each shutter can be operated independently of the others. It has the effect of dividing your home into sections, with the temperature in each section able to be controlled independently of the rest of the home. (In most cases, there’s a central control panel as well, letting you control all of the shutters from a single location.)
What Kind of Benefits Does It Provide?
The benefits of such a system are more varied than they might appear, and extend well beyond the convenience that such precise control affords. Of course, it’s quite nice to have such convenience in controlling the air in your home. Say, for example, that you’re cooking dinner over a hot stove and want to turn the air up to compensate for the heat. Another family member is reading in their bedroom, however, and if you turn up the air they’re likely to freeze. Zone controls let you both have the temperature you want without having to squabble or compromise.
Extend that tendency to its logical conclusion, however, and the real value of zone control becomes apparent. You can shut the system off in parts of the home you aren’t using, while still running it in parts of the home you are. That cuts down on your bills immeasurably, as well as sparing your system excess wear and tear, all without skimping on the cool air you need to stay comfortable during the summer.
Here in Springfield, PA, zone control systems can be installed and repaired by the pros at Wm. Henderson Plumbing, Heating & Cooling Inc.