Have your home’s energy bills been sky high recently? If so, you should do something about it to make sure that you’re not spending hundreds of dollars on electricity every month.
The average homeowner’s electric bill should only be a shade over $100 in most cases. If yours is a lot higher than that, you should know that there are things you can do to bring it back down to earth.
There are all kinds of great energy-saving tips that you can put to good use to get your energy usage under control. They’ll cut your electric bill back down to size and allow you to make your home more eco-friendly in the process.
Check out nine home energy saving tips below.
1. Replace Incandescent Light Bulbs With LED Ones
Are you still using old incandescent light bulbs in all of the lighting fixtures throughout your house? They could be driving your energy bills up without you even realizing it.
You should think about making the switch to LED light bulbs sooner than later. They use 75% less energy than their incandescent counterparts and also provide better quality lighting when they’re turned on.
2. Throw Your Old Thermostat Out and Put a Smart One in Its Place
Old incandescent light bulbs aren’t the only things you should be getting rid of when you’re trying to make your home more energy-efficient. You should also toss your old thermostat and hook up a smart thermostat instead.
Of all the energy-saving tips listed here, this one might make the biggest difference. It’ll give you more control over your heating and cooling system and ensure that you’re not wasting energy in an effort to keep your home comfortable.
Over time, your smart thermostat will learn what you like your home’s temperature set at during different times of the day and year and adjust it accordingly without you having to do a thing.
3. Make Sure You Service Your HVAC System on a Regular Basis
When is the last time you scheduled service for your home’s HVAC system? If it’s been a while now, there’s a decent chance that your HVAC system isn’t running as efficiently as it should.
You should arrange to have your HVAC system serviced at least once or twice every year. It’ll prove to be one of the best energy-saving tips for summer as well as one of the best winter energy-saving tips.
4. Seal Any Gaps and Cracks That Allow Air to Leak In and Out of Your House
If there are any gaps and cracks around the windows and doors in your home, they could be allowing air to leak in and out of your house at almost all times. This can force your HVAC system to work harder than it should have to in order to heat and cool your home.
You can prevent this from happening by sealing up these gaps and cracks. This will work wonders for the energy efficiency of your home’s heating and cooling system.
5. Hang Up the Right Window Coverings in Your House
If you just installed new windows in your home within the last year or two, you shouldn’t have to be too concerned about them allowing air to work its way in and out of your home. They should get the job done when it comes to providing your house with all the insulation it needs.
But if you have older windows in your home, they could very well be allowing air to sneak in and out. You can slow this air down by sticking the right window coverings in your house. Blinds and shades can be used to provide your windows with additional insulation.
These window treatments can also be used to stop the sun from shining into your home at all times and increasing the temperature. It’s one more way in which you can make your home more energy-efficient.
6. Inspect the Insulation in Your Attic Space
All homes have insulation up in the attic that is designed to stop air from inside them from escaping. But over the years, this insulation can begin to break down and stop doing its job.
If you haven’t checked on the condition of your home’s insulation lately, you might be able to benefit from doing it in a big way. You could find that you need to add more insulation to your attic space to ensure it’s able to do its job.
7. Consider Replacing Old Appliances With Energy-Efficient Ones
Is your refrigerator more than 15 or 20 years old? Do you have a washing machine and a dryer that are beginning to get up there in age? And has your hot water heater seen better days?
If you can afford to do it, you should consider replacing these old appliances with new ones. Investing in something like one of the many smart water heaters on the market today could reduce your home’s energy usage dramatically.
8. Unplug Electronics When You’re Not Using Them
If you were to take a walk around the inside of your house right now, you would probably find that you have all kinds of things plugged in that you haven’t used in quite some time now. Why are you letting them use up so much energy when you’re not even using them on a daily basis?
Unplug any electronics that you’re not using to conserve some energy. Otherwise, they’re going to continue to waste energy without giving you anything in return.
9. Hire a Professional to Perform an Energy Audit Every So Often
If you’re really committed to saving energy in your home, it’s not a bad idea to hire a professional to come out to your house to conduct an energy audit. They can figure out different areas in which you’re wasting too much energy every month.
It’s smart for homeowners to have energy audits done every few years. They’ll pretty much pay for themselves when you see how much money they’re able to save you.
Start Using These Energy-Saving Tips in Your Home
All homeowners should make a concerted effort to cut down on the amount of electricity that they use every month. It’ll save them some money on their electric bills and preserve the life of the appliances that they have throughout their homes.
Use the energy-saving tips found here to get started. You’ll be surprised by what a big difference you can make when you put these tips to the test.
Check out the rest of the articles on our blog to find more tips and tricks on making your home more energy-efficient.
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