How to Save Money on Your Home Energy Bills
Saving money on your home energy bills can leave you with a sizable amount of money you can spend on something else or save for a rainy day. To find out how you can do this, have a look at the five tips below. Try them out and you will enjoy the lower costs and also play a good role in keeping the environment green.
Maintain Your HVAC
Air conditioning is a major part of most homes in America, accounting for roughly 12% of the home energy expenditure in the U.S. This means that there are many HVAC units around, and if you have one in your home, the best way to keep it working efficiently is to service it regularly. Things like changing the filters are easy enough to do by yourself, but you will need to call in a qualified HVAC technician each time the seasons change to make sure your unit is working well and consuming minimal electricity.
Change Your Light Bulbs
The artificial lighting used at home may be draining more energy than is necessary, so put a stop to this by getting energy-efficient LED lightbulbs. These will illuminate your house at a fraction of the energy expenditure that regular bulbs do and you will notice a difference once you make the switch. You can also go a step further and ask everyone in your family to always switch the lights off when they leave a room and during the day to minimize energy usage.
Check Your Home’s Insulation
To make sure you’re not paying for more energy than you’re using, perform an inspection of your home and make sure that there are no gaps in your insulation. Check the doors and windows, and seal any visible cracks and spaces with caulk or weather stripping. Also, check the attic so you’re sure that there’s no leakage of heated indoor air occurring through the roof. According to Kingdom Roofing, 88% of survey respondents said that their company sold single-ply roofs, 82% sold commercial metal roofs, and 67% sold roof coatings. If you need to make any fixes and replacements, therefore, make sure to approach the right roofing company that will provide you with the specific solution you need.
Set a Lower Temperature for Your Heater
You may be spending more energy on heated water than is necessary, so avoid this by turning the temperature of your water heater down by a few degrees. You will find that it’s still hot enough to use comfortably and it doesn’t have to be scalding hot at all times. Don’t turn it down too low, however, because this may affect the ability of things like your dishwasher to effectively clean your dishes and kill bacteria. Find a temperature that works well and stick to it.
Get Energy-Saving Appliances
Finally, if you have old appliances around the home, switch them out for Energy Star appliances which use between 10% and 50% less energy than those used by standard appliances. This will see you make savings while enjoying the same benefits you enjoyed before, and you will also leave a smaller carbon footprint, which is a definite plus. Shop around for these appliances and in some time, you will realize you’ve saved an impressive amount, getting the new appliances to pay for themselves.
With the current state of the environment and the economy, it’s important for everyone to do what they can do to save some energy around their houses. Follow the five tips above and you will find it easy to do this, making your house an efficient and modern marvel that your whole family enjoys being a part of.
