COLLEGE STATION, Texas — As the heat outside continues to make this summer one almost too hot to handle, temperatures are on the rise — and so are electric bills.
“When we first moved here three years ago it was almost unbearable," said College Station resident, Alan Faustino.
"We were spending anywhere between $500 and $800 just in electricity, and our A/C wasn’t really cooling the house down. It would get down to at least 82 to 79 and it would not cool down anymore.”
Faustino was determined to find a way he could stay cool in his own home without breaking the bank. That’s when he learned about installing solar screens.
"Wherever we want them, we actually have to turn it up because it gets a little too cold sometimes," Faustino said.
"I can get it down to 72 sometimes, but we always have to turn it back up.”
Faustino's bill is down as low as $200 to $400 dollars a month — roughly half of what he was paying before.
Hwoever, you don’t have to install solar screens to save on your electricity bill.
Richard Benavidez with Barker Heating and Cooling shared with 15ABC how Central Texans can save without turning off A/C units.
“We don’t recommend people turning them off — we encourage them to turn them up a bit during the day to 76 or 77, and to 73 or 74 in the evening when the sun is going down, so it doesn’t tax the unit so bad," Benavidez said.
If installing solar screens aren’t in budget, the team at Barker Heating and Cooling has a few ways to keep up with A/C units this summer.
By making sure to keep up with scheduled maintenance, being sure to change out A/C filters to keep them from overworking the unit, and closing all blinds in the house during peak hours can be crucial.
