Use energy-efficient compact fluorescent lights. Repair drips and leaks Cover the swimming pool Broom instead of hose Don't let the water run Fully loaded conserves water Shade your air conditioner Save energy in the winter & summer Save money in the summer Use energy-efficient compact fluorescent lights. About 10% of your monthly electric bill goes to lighting your home. By replacing the standard incandescent lights with long lasting, energy-efficient compact fluorescent lights, you can save money and electricity while protecting the environment. Compact fluorescents use 75% less energy and can burn for 10,000 hours as compared to 750 hours, the average life of an incandescent. Repair dripping faucets and leaky toilets. Dripping faucets can waste about 2,000 gallons of water each year. Leaky toilets can waste as much as 20,000 gallons each month. If you have a swimming pool, get a cover. You'll cut the loss of water by evaporation by 90 percent.

Use a broom, rather than a hose, to clean sidewalks and driveways. When washing dishes by hand, use two basins - one for washing and one for rinsing rather than let the water run. Defrost frozen food in the refrigerator or in the microwave instead of running water over it. Only run the dishwasher and clothes washer when they are fully loaded. To prevent water loss from evaporation, don't water your lawn during the hottest part of the day or when it is windy. Don't over water your lawn. Only water every three to five days in the summer and 10 to 14 days in the winter. Shading your air conditioner unit not only saves energy, but helps lengthen the life of the unit. The shade provided by a tree or shrub eases the strain on an air conditioner unit. Just be sure not to block the air circulation necessary to run the machine efficiently. Use natural sunlight to light your home and warm up a room in the winter. In summer, use shades or drapes to keep your rooms cool.

Ceiling fans used alone or along with an air conditioner can save on your air conditioner costs and work best in rooms with high ceilings. Spare your electric range and oven by cooking meals in a toaster oven, slow cooker, or other energy-savings appliance. If you must use your oven, cook several dishes at once and turn it off a few minutes before the food is cooked. Turn down the thermostat on your water heater to 110-120 degrees and insulate it. Water heater jackets are available at local hardware outlets. Remember to turn off all appliances when not using them. Clean your refrigerator condenser every 3 months. Set your thermostat at as high a temperature as comfortably possible in the summer, and ensure humidity control if needed. The smaller the difference between the indoor and outdoor temperatures, the lower your overall cooling bill will be.When troubleshooting walk-in freezers, technicians often find a frozen evaporator coil. Although there are several possible causes, one common cause involves the defrost system.

For some reason, the system is not properly defrosting the evaporator’s coil on a regular basis. outdoor hvac unit making loud noiseIn order to effectively troubleshoot this problem, a technician must understand the design and operation of the defrost systems typically used.outside ac unit fan stays on One popular method of defrosting walk-in freezers is the electric defrost system. ac unit stuck onThis is comprised of several components, including a defrost timer, resistive heater(s), defrost termination switch, fan cycling control, and drain line heater. An electric resistance heater is placed on the outer surface of the evaporator’s coils. The energized heater supplies enough heat to completely defrost the coils. The resistive heaters used on a typical electric defrost system are sized to provide sufficient heat to effectively defrost the coil’s surface.

Their capacity is normally rated in watts per foot. They are shaped to fit snugly onto the coil surface, creating efficient heat transfer during defrosts. Most heaters are manufactured for a specific coil, and when replacing these heaters it is best to obtain the OEM replacement. Universal defrost heaters are available, but matching their wattage and shape may be difficult. A defrost timer controls the entire defrost operation. It initiates the defrost cycle, controls the operation of the compressor and defrost heaters, and is part of the defrost termination. Defrost timers can be adjusted to initiate defrost from just once a day to several times a day. The actual number of defrosts per day depends upon the location of the walk-in. Walk-in freezers are usually designed to defrost once or twice a day. The more humid and warm a location, the more defrosts will be needed. If a system needs to be defrosted more frequently, add only one additional defrost period at a time and monitor the results.

Adding too many defrost periods will not be beneficial to the system or the customer. In a common wiring diagram for a time-initiated, temperature-terminated electric defrost system the time motor (TM) is energized continuously. Normally closed contacts 2-4 of the defrost timer are wired in series with the compressor and the evaporator fan motor (EFM). Normally open contacts 1-3 are wired in series with the electric defrost heaters and the timer release solenoid (TRS). The timer motor controls the operation of contacts 2-4 and 1-3. They work opposite each other. When contacts 2-4 are closed, 1-3 are opened. When contacts 2-4 are opened, 1-3 are closed. When the timer motor initiates a defrost, contacts 2-4 will open and 1-3 will close. This stops the compressor and the evaporator fan motor, and energizes the defrost heaters. A defrost cycle can be terminated based on temperature, pressure, or time. These three methods are commonly referred to as time-temperature (defrost cycle initiated by time, terminated by a temperature switch), time-pressure (defrost cycle initiated by time, terminated by a pressure switch), and time-time (defrost cycle initiated by time, terminated by the defrost timer).

Most defrost timers will also have a fail-safe time which can be set to terminate the defrost based on time. On systems being terminated by a pressure or temperature switch, if the termination switch fails, the defrost will be terminated by time. The fail-safe time should be set long enough to allow the system to terminate by the temperature or pressure switch, and short enough to prevent the system from over defrosting or creating a hazardous condition by having the heaters energized all the time. Usually the fail-safe time is 35-45 minutes. Terminating a defrost cycle by temperature is the most popular method. A temperature control is used as the defrost termination switch. It is installed on the evaporator at a location where the design engineers feel that frost will leave the coil last. At a specified temperature, the defrost termination switch closes and energizes the TRS, switching the system back into the refrigerating mode. (The TRS is an electrical solenoid located in the defrost timer.)

When the TRS is energized, it mechanically switches the timer contacts: 2-4 will close and 1-3 will open. The temperature at which the defrost termination switch closes will vary from design to design. Check with the manufacturer to determine the temperature setting. Some defrost termination switches will have their settings stamped onto the body of the device. One typical temperature cut-in used on many systems is 60°F. The defrost cycle can also be terminated by a pressure switch, where a pressure control is used as the defrost termination switch. It is connected to sense the pressure of refrigerant in the evaporator. When it senses a pressure that will ensure all the ice is removed from the evaporator, it will close and terminate defrost. Many times the pressure control and defrost timer are combined into one unit. The pressure at which the pressure switch closes will depend on the type of refrigerant used in the system. Check with the manufacturer. The defrost timer can also be used to terminate defrost by time, although this method isn’t very popular.