Nowadays, air conditioners are widely used throughout the world, irrespective of particular places. Air conditioners are mainly used in certain places like home, office, IT industry, computer lab and more to cool down the room temperature.
Even though the air conditioner makes us feel chill and comfortable, it has some negative impacts on the environment.
Let us delve in detail about the environmental impact of air conditioning and also about how to overcome it.
Impacts of Air Conditioning
Here, we have listed several factors that are the main root cause for environmental degradation.
1.Energy Consumption
Generally air conditioners require more electricity to run the appliance. It results in double the electricity cost and also impacts the environment badly.
As the electricity powered to the air conditioners are produced from non-renewable sources such as coal, oil/petroleum and natural gas. The separation and usage from non-renewable sources, which causes environmental impact by increased greenhouse gas emission.
2.Refrigerants
The refrigerants in the air conditioners contain harmful substances to the environment such as hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) or hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).
If the refrigerants in the air conditioner release such gases, which impacts on the environment including climate change, global warming, ozone depletion and greenhouse effects.
3.Increased demand of AC
As the air conditioner cools down the indoor/inside the room, it might emit the excess heat to the surrounding outside environment. Which results in increased overall temperature.
So it became hard to bear the heat. Hence it increases the use of air conditioning demand.
4.Production and Disposal
The production process includes separation of some resources, which causes environmental degradation.
And also if the repaired or damaged air conditioner were not disposed properly, it may have possibilities to release harmful gas from the refrigerants.
This leads to environmental degradation because of global warming, climate change, ozone depletion and more.
How to Balancing Comfort and Eco-Friendliness?
Here, we have given several strategies to balancing comfort and eco-friendliness to the environment.
1.Energy Efficient:
Prefer to buy a high ISEER rated air conditioner as it is more energy efficient. Hence it consumes less electricity. Also it facilitates saving electricity cost and reduces environmental impact.
2.Thermostat:
Use thermostats to adjust and control the temperature, which helps to avoid and minimize the unnecessary energy consumption. We can use either manual or programmable thermostat devices.
Manual thermostat requires setting the desired temperature manually, which is not in a programmable thermostat.
3.Renewable Sources:
If the electricity is produced from renewable sources such as solar or wind energy, which will not emit the greenhouse gas. It results in making it eco-friendly. Hence, to prevent the environmental impact, power your air conditioner to the electricity which is generated from renewable resources.
4.Maintenance:
We need to do regular and proper maintenance to operate it more efficiently. For that, check whether the air filter is clotted with dirt/dirt, check for refrigerant leak and also inspect all the other parts.
Because, the ac which is in good condition only, capable of performing more efficiently. This leads to consuming less energy. It also helps in enhancing the lifespan of air conditioners and reduces the environmental impacts.
5.Refrigerants
Select an air conditioner having eco-friendly refrigerant gas like hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs), as it facilitates reducing the impact on the environment.
6.Choose the Right Size
Choosing a right sized air conditioner for your room is most important. For example, if you are installing a small AC in a larger room. It takes more time than usual to cool your room. It leads to increased electricity bills and also harms the environment due to increase in carbon emission.
So it is better to determine the air conditioner’s size accurately.
7.Upgrade
Each and everything has a specific lifespan, Right? If you are using an air conditioner for more than 15 years, then it would definitely increase your electricity bills and impact the environment badly.
Hence, upgrading to the newer system is recommended to avoid negative impact.
Conclusion
As the air conditioner makes us comfortable, environmental impact due to its usage can’t be avoided. So, to maintain a balance between comfort and eco-friendliness, choosing energy-efficient appliances is the most important factor. With all the above strategies, we can create not only a comfortable cooling area but also environmentally friendly.
