Air conditioning can get quite expensive.
We are all guilty of wanting to keep ourselves in the perfect climate-controlled environment.
It is essential to understand the costs of cooling a room so you don’t get surprised by an expensive electric bill.
We have done some math for you and have come up with some information regarding how much it costs to run an 8000 BTU air conditioner.
This info should help you better understand what it costs to keep your home comfortable during those rough summer months.
How Much Does It Cost to Run an 8000 BTU Air Conditioner?
It will cost you approximately eight cents per hour to run an 8000 BTU air conditioner.
If you were to run this unit for eight hours a day for eight months of the year, it would cost you about $150.
When you think about this cost, it certainly doesn’t seem like much to keep yourself cool during those difficult months.
However, this price will vary considerably based on where you live and the temperature you are trying to keep the room at.
This is simply an average running cost, and you will not see this as a consistent number the entire time you run the air conditioner.
It seems as though $150.00 is not all that much money over the course of a year to help you stay cool.
How Big of an Area Will an 8000 BTU Air Conditioner Cool?
An 8000 BTU air conditioner can cool an area that is 350 square feet.
For most people, this is the size of a bedroom, and the 8000 BTU air conditioners are used for bedrooms.
This probably helps to make more sense of why the 8000 BTU costs seem so low.
You would not be able to cool an entire house using a window unit this size.
When people have whole home air conditioning systems or central air conditioning systems, you will notice costs are significantly increased.
This is because the entire unit is working to cool the whole house.
You also have to remember that you will have areas of the system where cool air will escape the house for a whole-house air conditioner.
For instance, people lose quite a bit of air through the roof and the floor of their home.
This makes the AC work harder and cost more money for the homeowner.
When you use an 8000 BTU air conditioner in a single bedroom, it is much easier to make sure you are keeping the cool air in the room.
You can make the room more efficient, and therefore, the AC unit will not have to work quite as hard.
How to Cut Air Conditioning Costs
There are a few ways you can help to cut the costs of air conditioning.
Throughout a summer in a warm climate, there is no question that it will cost you hundreds of dollars to cool your home.
Here are a few things you can do to help lower the pricing.
1. Plant Trees and Shrubs for Shade
If you have no landscaping around your house, then chances are you will probably have no shade.
When there is some shade around your home, it will significantly lower the temperatures in your house.
Even if you have to plant a tree now, you will thank yourself in a few years when it gives your home some added shade.
2. Solar Screens
You can put screens in your windows which will help to keep the warm air out.
The solar screens will block some of the strong rays coming from the sun, and they can make a big impact when it comes to lowering temperatures.
Solar screens are more expensive than traditional screens, but it is certainly worth it to help you keep the cost of cooling the home down.
3. Fans
Fans will help any house stay cooler.
They can be used as a substitute for air conditioning, or they can be used to help an air conditioning unit work more effectively.
When you use a fan, you are going to lower the temperature in the room by several degrees.
This will also use much less energy and electricity than if you were to use the air conditioning unit on its own.
4. Keep the AC Filter Clean
One other simple way to keep your AC costs down is to make sure your unit is working efficiently.
If you are cleaning the filter and replacing it if necessary, chances are the unit will function much better.
Many people don’t realize how important it is to clean the filter on a window AC unit.
Simple steps like this can reduce your energy bill by thousands of dollars over the course of a few years.
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