At times, the air conditioner in your Mesa, AZ home is absolutely essential for survival. Without it, everyone in your household would be at risk of heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and other heat-related illnesses. When local temperatures are their highest, a functional A/C system can be downright life-saving. Notwithstanding this fact, how you use your air conditioner may be harming the environment. Home heating and cooling equipment is known to release harmful pollutants. The good news is that it’s possible to use your air conditioner without having any major and long-lasting impact on the world around you.
How Do Air Conditioners Pollute the Outdoor Air?
It’s no secret that poorly maintained air conditioners release harmful contaminants into the home. If you don’t change your system’s air filter regularly, it can go from collecting harmful particulates to shedding these allergens and circulating them throughout living area. When filters become clogged, they often release the materials that they’ve accumulated. HVAC systems also become less effective in regulating indoor humidity when they have clogged filters, and the risk of mold and mildew development gradually increases.
However, what you may not know is that even when your HVAC system is well-maintained, it is still releasing airborne contaminants outdoors. This is due to the refrigerant that modern air conditioners use to create cooled air. Older air conditioner refrigerants like R-22 produced chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs. CFCs directly contribute to the destruction of the ozone layer and release harmful greenhouse gases. Although R-22 and other refrigerants like it are now banned, the current generation of A/C refrigerants produce hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) instead. HFCs don’t damage the ozone layer, but they are major contributors to the greenhouse effect. Thus, even as air conditioners are cooling down homes, they’re also contributing to global warming.
How to Limit the Environmental Impact of Your Air Conditioner
Keeping your air conditioner well-maintained will ensure that it continues to work at the highest possible levels of efficiency. Even small tasks like regularly changing its air filter can make a difference. Efficient air conditioners use less energy and take less time to cool homes down. As a result, they run less often. If you have an older and inefficient air conditioner or if you have one that still uses R-22, now is the time to have it replaced.
It’s also a good idea to have multiple ways to keep your home cool. Pairing your air conditioner with ceiling fans that rotate counterclockwise in the summer is a great start. You can also install light-blocking window treatments, add more insulation to your home, and seal up openings in building materials that allow for air loss.
At Rusty's Air Conditioning And Heating , we care about the natural environment too. That’s why we offer reliable and convenient HVAC maintenance services to residents of Mesa, Arizona and the surrounding areas. We also provide heating and cooling system installations and timely HVAC repairs. If you’re interested in making your home’s heating and cooling equipment more efficient, we’re here to help. Call us today to get started.
