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Too Cool – Air Conditioning Facts That Will Surprise You!



It’s that time of year!  Barbecues, vacations and the humming of air conditioning units keeping homes cool on every block.  Yep, I’m talking about summer.  And while we are grateful for that chilled air when the temperature soars up into the 90’s and beyond, there are still shocking statistics associated with a/c in America.  So, kick back and take a peek at what we’ve uncovered!
  • 84% of homes in the United States has some kind of air conditioning.  The US uses more air conditioning annually than every other country combined.
  • It is more common for homes in the US to have an a/c unit than a dishwasher, garage or even a dining room!
  • Houses in the South, Midwest and West are more likely to have a central air conditioning system while homes in the Northeast tend to utilize a room air conditioner.  This could be a window air conditioner or ventless portable a/c unit.
  • In the Southern United States, 67% of central a/c is used all summer long.  Can you blame them?  Temps can be a blazing!
  • 6% of all electricity produced in the U.S. is used by residential air conditioning.
  • The United States spends around $29 billion dollars on a/c costs.  $29 BILLION!  In fact, the average home spends around $300 bucks a year running cooling components – 30% towards A/C, 17% towards refrigeration and 4% towards fans.
  • Electricity demand is 10 to 22% higher than in the winter.  Well, who actually likes to sweat?
  • Air Conditioners pump out 117 million metric tons of Carbon Dioxide annually, which is about 2 tons per home.  Sounds like we need to either use less a/c or plant a lot more trees!
  • Up until 1995, CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) were used as refrigerant in a/c units but were found to be extremely toxic to the ozone and environment.  In the 80’s HCFCs (halogenated CFCs) were introduced to replace them but have been found to be just as harmful.  An eco-friendly replacement is geared to hit us by 2030.  Geez… you think we’d get it right eventually, huh?
  • 5.5% of passenger car fuel is used up on running the air conditioning.  In a hybrid car, this results in a greater loss of gas mileage.


ac - Too Cool - Air Conditioning Facts That Will Surprise You!
If you think those facts about U.S. air conditioning consumption are wild, check out these tidbits from our pals overseas!
  • What a difference a decade makes!  In the early 90’s, only 1% of homes in China had a form of air conditioning but that skyrocketed to 62% by 2003!
  • 50 million air conditioning units were sold in China in 2010!  That’s a lot of cool people.
  • India had only 2% of households with some form of air conditioning but that percentage is climbing steadily each year.
And to do our part to keep our ozone intact and save our environment…
  • For every degree you put your a/c at above 72, you eliminate 120 pounds of CO2 emissions from leaking into the air!
It’s completely fascinating to see how much air conditioning has changed over the years!   What was once considered a highly luxurious item is now becoming a commonplace fixture in homes around the world.  And while we still have a long way to go in making air conditioning units safer for our environment and future generations, the future looks extremely bright!
When the heat bears down on you this summer season, there are a couple of things you can do to make your unit run more efficiently.  Always keep all doors and windows shut when running your a/c and make sure you call in an HVAC professional to perform a routine checkup on your unit.  Dirty air filters, coils, clogged drain lines and accumulated debris can all create needless obstacles for your a/c unit to overcome.  With a little maintenance and care, your HVAC systems will be ready to handle whatever comes their way, year after year!
Check This Out For Tips On How To Reduce Cooling Costs This Summer!
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Location: Chicago Ridge, IL, USA

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