Summer is right around the corner, which means trips to the beach, time off from school and of course, outrageous electric bills. Don?t spend a fortune this summer on your energy costs, follow this guide to save money all around your home.
Cooling – You may be surprised to hear that about 50% of the energy costs for a home is from associated heating and cooling costs. In the summer of course you are concerned with cooling, not heating. You can make your AC more efficient by ensuring you change the filter, keep the unit in working order and sealing the ducts to increase proper airflow and efficiency. Another money saving tip is to invest in a thermostat that can be programmed, which will automatically turn off your pricey AC or heat when nobody is home or when you are asleep.
Household Appliances – There are dozens of different large and small appliances scattered throughout our homes, we do in many ways depend on them. Just a brief list of these, all of which eat up energy, include televisions, computers, AC units, refrigerators, microwaves, dishwashers, lamps and many more. You can help lower associated costs by looking for highly rated, energy efficient models that take less energy to run and provide the same benefits.
Save money on water heating – Water heating accounts for a large percentage of every home’s energy bill. But you don’t have to start instituting a 5 minute shower rule to see savings in this area. You can buy an energy efficient water heater which will get the job done while eating up less resources.
Lighting – Many will be shocked to hear that lighting costs the average homeowner approximately 20% of their electric bill. Sure, your mother always told you to turn off the lights in a vacated room, and that helps tremendously, however you also need to remove the incandescent light bulbs that may still be in your home and replace them with CFLs (compact fluorescent light bulbs) that mostly come in those weird spiral bulbs. Those newer bulbs use 75% less energy than the incandescent bulbs! Startling, but true, and the cost of the new bulbs will easily be made up within 6 months of usage because if you?ll remember they last approximately 10 times longer than an incandescent bulbs.
Home Electronics – Various appliances from TVs to even stoves and microwaves use digital displays that are in ?standby? power mode. When purchasing such items make sure of the energy rating that each is given, and opt for those that use less energy even in ?standby? mode!
Office Equipment – Besides the fact that most home office equipment is running 24 hours a day, all of the accessories associated with a home office also drain off a tremendous amount of energy. Be sure to purchase equipment that is the lowest rated energy guzzler anytime you replace the office equipment.
In general, most people will be superbly surprised with the energy savings experienced by following these very simple tips.
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