Home Cooling Systems
In some parts of the country, having a cooling system for your home is more of a luxury than a necessity. However, there are other parts of the country where a home cooling system is a health necessity. When temperatures go up, children, the sick, and the elderly are at a heightened risk of experiencing emergency health issues. In cases like this, a home cooling system is a necessary investment.
On the other hand, some people just like having the ability to escape the heat in a climate controlled space. No matter what your reasoning is for getting a home cooling system, it's important that you learn the pros and cons of the different systems out there. This is especially true when it comes to buying a more energy efficient home cooling system. Here, you will learn about a few of the most popular and energy efficient home cooling systems on the market.
Heat Pump
Despite the name, heat pumps are able to provide cooling as well as heating. They are able to do this by way of a compressor that is built into the system. The compressor is very similar to the type used on home refrigeration units and air conditioners. Despite the similar mechanisms, heat pumps are significantly more efficient than air conditioners.
This is because air conditioners "condition" air from directly outside of your home. This air is obviously very warm, meaning the conditioner has to work much harder to cool the air. This uses up a significant amount of electricity and produces quite a lot of noise in the process. On the other hand, heat pumps often pull air from below ground level where the air has a more even temperature. Even as air above ground is in the high 90's, air below ground level can hover around 60 or 70 degrees. This means the heat pump uses less energy cooling the air down.
Swamp Cooler
An evaporative, or "swamp," cooler is a cooling system that uses simple water evaporation as its primary means of cooling. These systems often mount on the outside of windows and buildings much like an air conditioner. Unlike an air conditioner, swamp coolers are known to be quite energy efficient and cheap to operate. This is due primarily to the simplicity of swamp coolers and the fewer mechanical parts associated with their use.
Swamp coolers don't have compressors like heat pumps and regular window air conditioners. They use simple evaporative cooling to bring the temperature of any room down to a manageable level. Since they lack a compressor, they use much less energy than competing home cooling options. The best use for a swamp cooler is in an apartment or in a smaller area. Since it is impossible to use ducts to transfer the cooling effect of a swamp cooler to a larger area, they are best used on a small-scale basis.
Ceiling Fans
Despite all of the advancements that have been made in home cooling, the humble ceiling fan is still one of the best options out there for home cooling. These fans are non-intrusive, often use very little energy, and make little or no noise. They can be a great solution for small-scale cooling and have been a popular home fixture for decades.
The other benefit of ceiling fans is that you often won't need to hire a contractor to install them for you. Many newer ceiling fan models are designed to be installed by unskilled laborers. This means that you won't need a huge amount of installation experience to install the fan. It also means that you can quickly and easily cool your home in an efficient way.
Installing Home Cooling Systems
The first thing you should do is contract a home energy auditor. The energy auditor will come out to your home and go through its unique layout. During this process, he or she will make a note of the various energy issues in your home. This information will help the auditor come up with a home cooling plan that works best for your home. It can be very tempting to just get a cooling system that looks like it would work well. However, it is always a good idea to get help from qualified professionals.
Once you have decided on the type of system you want, you will have to contact a qualified HVAC installer to put it in. If you get a ceiling fan, then you may be able to install it yourself. However, larger systems like heat pumps and swamp coolers need to be installed by professional HVAC installers. There are a lot of websites that specialize in reviews of contractors and other service providers.
