The good news is that there are lots of ways to save electricity when the temperatures begin to sink down to the cold zone. Here are some of the easiest and fastest ways to reduce your energy consumption during the frigid months of the year:
- Open curtains: It’s easy to forget about the warming power of natural sunlight. Open all the curtains in your home during the daytime unless you need to keep one or two closed for the sake of privacy. This is one of the easiest of all energy saving tips .
- Audit: Have a local contractor do a home energy audit
- Seal: Walk through your home and seal off any cracks, leaks or seams that let cold air inside
- Opt for LEDs: If you decorate with lights during the holidays, use LEDs to reduce energy consumption by up to 70 percent
- Maintain water heaters and HVAC systems: Have a professional check to see that your water heater and entire HVAC system is in proper working order
- Add insulation: Check all the places in your home where you already have insulation and consider adding more or replacing the old stuff
- Clean frig coils: Disconnect your refrigerator’s plug from the electrical outlet and wait about 20 minutes. Then, carefully use a small whisk broom to remove excess dust from the coils.
Stay Safe Too
Winter is a busy time of year for most people, compared to the rest of the seasons. That’s why it’s important to remember safety in the midst of implementing save electricity tips and other advice. What makes the year’s first-and-last season an especially important time to think about safety? Mainly because so many homes have fireplaces. Plus, large numbers of people use portable heaters.
Whenever you use your fireplace or an add-on heating unit, make sure not to leave it unattended. There’s no reason to let your urge to stay warm increase the risk of fire or smoke inhalation. If you do use a fireplace to keep your place cozy, always use a screen, never leave it burning in an empty room, and make sure there is ventilation in the area around the fireplace. Fumes from simmering logs can make you cough and irritate your eyes, so always keep an eye on the fire to stay safe and comfortable.
With portable heaters, always place them on hard surfaces, double-check that they’re in good working order before using them to heat a room, and don’t run them longer than the “max operating time” listed in the owner’s manual
How To Slice Your Electric Bill In Half
- Solar Panels: Adding a few solar panels to your roof or to a backyard power deck can make a big difference in annual energy costs. It might take up to a year or so for the panels to “pay for themselves,” but after that, all the energy they produce is completely free. This is one reason that so many homeowners are purchasing solar panels to defray utility expenses.
- Energy-Saving Bulbs: If you replace all the light bulbs in your residence with energy-saving versions, you stand to cut your electric bill by a lot. Combined with other methods of energy saving, this simple action takes almost no time, involves no knowledge of high-tech devices, and will quickly turn your home into an energy-efficient place.
- Insulation: It’s important to realize that insulation wears out over time. That’s why it’s wise to have a local contractor do an energy audit of your home at least once per year. That way, you’ll know when insulation should be replaced. The beauty of insulation is that it has the ability to keep your home warm in winter and cooler in the summer by maintaining the indoor temperature.
- Smart Thermostats: An inexpensive device like a smart thermostat can cut energy costs immediately. These clever little devices are simple to install and will keep your comfortable temperature range consistent from day to day and month to month.
- Helpful Habits: By creating personal habits, like turning off unnecessary lights and making sure leaky doors and windows are properly sealed, you can add to the reduction in your monthly utility bills.
Know Your Usage Patterns
Knowing your own habits is a powerful tool in the battle against high energy costs. It’s really the first step because unless you know how your money is being spent, it’s hard to take precise, effective action to bring costs down. For instance, if you realize that most of your high electric bill is the result of a preference for very low indoor temperatures during summer months, you’re on to something. Use that knowledge to adjust your air conditioner so that you remain comfortable but don’t keep the setting so low. Also, perhaps you realize that you routinely leave lights on in empty rooms of the house or apartment. This is a very valuable piece of self knowledge because you can simply post a few notes around your residence that say something like, “Did I turn out unnecessary lights?” Sometimes it’s the little things, the simple steps that make a significant difference in your total energy bill.
Reference https://prepaidlights.net/how-to-save-money-on-your-electricity-bill/
