Appliances work harder during the hot summer months. Harder work equals more energy consumption. To help your appliances keep their cool this summer, we suggest these energy savings tips from the Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources and our own RepairGuru:

Air Conditioning and Cooling
- Close your blinds, shades or draperies during the hottest part of the day to keep the sun out.

- Air conditioners work to remove humidity, so reserve moisture-making jobs such as dishwashing, laundry and bathing for early morning or night when it's cooler.

- If you're buying a new air-conditioning system, make sure it's efficient. Central air conditioning systems are graded by Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) and window units by Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER). A higher number means better efficiency. We recommend 13 or higher. 10 SEER is the current minimum efficiency established by the US Department of Energy but that will go up to 13 in 2006.

- Make sure your air conditioner is sized properly. Window air conditioners are designed to cool one room only. An oversized unit may not dehumidify properly and may use more energy than necessary. A rule of thumb is about 20 BTUs for each square foot of room.  

- The outdoor unit of a central air conditioner should be kept free from plants, dirt or grass clippings that will interfere with air circulation. Wash the coil on the back of the unit periodically with a garden hose. Be careful not to spray the motor or other electrical components. If you live on a dirt road, consider covering the unit in the off season to keep unwanted dust from entering the unit.

- Shade the outdoor air conditioning unit if possible. A unit in the sun will use up to 5 percent more energy than one in the shade.

- Clean the filter behind the front panel in window units monthly. Try RepairClinic.com's Cut-to-Fit Electrostatic Filter.

Refrigerators and Freezers
- Refrigerators and freezers operate most efficiently when full but not overcrowded. Arrange contents in a way that allows air to circulate.

- Make sure refrigerator and freezer doors fit tightly. If they don't, adjust or replace gaskets. You can find replacement gaskets for your model using the PartDetective.

- Set your refrigerator thermostat between 37 and 40 degrees and your freezer between 0 and 5 degrees.

- You may want to use your refrigerator’s energy efficiency setting to conserve energy. Turning the energy efficiency switch on will turn off heaters inside the door frames, which will conserve energy. However, during hot summer months, having these heaters off may cause condensation on the outside of your refrigerator doors. If this happens, you may want to turn the energy efficiency switch off, but your energy usage will go up as a result.

- Clean dust from refrigerator coils. RepairClinic.com offers a Refrigerator Condenser Brush to help you with this messy task.

For more summer energy savings tips, visit the Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources website at http://www.state.ma.us/DOER/pub_info/sumrestip.htm.