Consumer wallets, air conditioners take a pounding during heat wave

The wilting heat wave also is taking aim at wallets and air conditioners across the suburbs.

Both are taking a pounding as temperatures soar into the 90s and the heat index inches up toward triple digits.

How much more electricity are people using this summer? For residential customers, it's 55 percent to 65 percent more energy now than last summer, according to ComEd.

And then there's the cost of repairing overworked AC units. Local repairmen say business is way, way up.

"We're using more equipment and have had double the number of service calls," said Richard Okolita, vice president of Ibbotson Heating and Air Conditioning, a family-owned company in Arlington Heights.

As the National Weather Service extended an extreme heat advisory north through the Chicago region Friday, ComEd temporarily halted any service suspensions for residential customers through Monday. And the utility is closely monitoring its network to ensure the system is performing well.

While August numbers are not yet available, July showed that ComEd's average residential customer used 1,136 kilowatts, compared to an average of 691 kilowatts in July 2009. That's up about 65 percent, driven largely by weather conditions for July 2009 when temperatures were well below normal, and with the opposite being the case this year, said ComEd spokesman Bennie Currie.

Currie could not say how many more services calls were being received for heat-related problems or how much more consumers have been paying for their electric bills so far this summer.

But it's clear the AC is on across the suburbs.

Ibbotson Heating and Air Conditioning's Okolita said his company typically gets about 40 calls a day, but during the recent heat wave, those calls have reached about 80. The majority of the calls involve an air conditioner that's broken, that has longer-than-normal cycles or just isn't cooling the house enough, he said.

Like other such companies, he's had to increase staffing, increase employee hours, and even stay open six days instead of five.

"An average cost to repair an air conditioner could be around $200, compared to a replacement, which could be about $3,000," Okolita said.

Perfect Temperature Control Inc. in Des Plaines has been receiving more calls per day as well and employees are logging 10- and 12-hour days, said Perfect Temperature Treasurer Ziggy Lebherz.

"Because of the economy, we're finding more people are repairing their air conditioners, more than replacing them," Lebherz said. "Years ago, some people wouldn't hesitate to put in new equipment, but now they want to just repair the older one."

He said his repairmen are finding many ACs with dirty or clogged filters, despite the fact that the owners replacement the filters on a regular schedule.

"If they're running the units for longer hours, then they have to check them more," he said.

Keep your coolYour home air-conditioning system - and your wallet - can take a pounding when it's extremely hot outside. Here are some tips from ComEd and air-conditioning experts:bull; Make sure your AC filter is clean, even if you replace it on schedule. Increased use can lead to clogs and force the unit to work harder, using more energy.bull; Keep thermostats at a constant, comfortable level (75 to 78 degrees) when at home. (Lowering thermostat setting below desired temperature will not cool home faster.)bull; To reduce heat, moisture during warmest part of the day, run other large appliances (oven, washer, dryer, dishwasher) in early morning or evening. If possible, use microwave to cook or barbecue outside.bull; Keep shades, blinds, curtains closed. About 40 percent of unwanted heat comes through windows. Awnings can reduce heat gain by up to 75 percent. Window coatings and window film can reflect as much as 80 percent of direct rays from the sun.bull; Keep doors to the outside, garage or attic firmly closed to keep cool air in and hot air out.bull; Use fans to evenly distribute cool air, reduce air conditioner's "on" time.bull; Place window air conditioners on the north or shady side of the house to avoid overworking the unit in the hot daytime sun.bull; Customers who have an outage or questions can call ComEd at 800-334-7661. Spanish-speaking customers can call 800-955-8237Sources: ComEd, Daily Herald research