Warm up to your air conditioning

Air conditioners account for 40 per cent of the electricity used by NSW households during the summer. Air conditioning can cost the average home around $265 a year to run, compared with just $20 per year to operate six ceiling fans.

If you just can't live without your air conditioner, there are other ways to cut your summer power use.

Cool, not icy, is best - keep rooms you are using at a comfortable 23-26°C. By raising the temperature setting on your air conditioner by just one degree, you can drop your power use by up to 10 per cent.

Turn the air con thermostat up by a few degrees and you'll hardly notice the difference - until you see your power bill. A few degrees higher can mean a power bill that's $65 lower plus a saving of 250kg of carbon pollution each year.

If you're buying a new air conditioner always compare appliances using the energy rating label; remember the more stars on the label, the cheaper your electricity bills will be.

To achieve even greater power savings with your home cooling you could consider other forms of cooling, ceiling fans are the most energy efficient, and turn off your air conditioners overnight and when you are out.

To spend less running your air conditioning system:

• set the thermostat to between 23–26°C in summer
• adjust louvers to point cold air towards the ceiling - cool air falls so you will get a constant flow of cool air through the room
• install a zoning system – only rooms requiring air conditioning are cooled.