Energy Efficiency Tips
Are you concerned about your electric bill? Is it higher than you expected? Just like any product, you pay for what you use, so if you are using more electricity than you wanted or expected, here are some suggestions for decreasing your usage. You may also want to read your meter daily for several months to determine your usage habits.
Think about the weather. Numerous high bill complaints are registered following extreme weather conditions when your heating or cooling systems have worked overtime to keep your home comfortable. Watch your thermostat and keep it at a consistent temperature. Changing it often wastes energy. Recommendations are for 78 degrees or above in the summer and 68 or below in the winter.
Check your air filter. Replacing a dirty filter is probably the simplest, least expensive and most often-overlooked maintenance job you have. A clean filter makes it easier for the system to work and improves its performance.
Check the two elements in your water heater. If one is burned out, the other one is working full-time to heat your water causing a terrific increase in electric usage. A new element costs about $10.
Read your meter daily for two weeks to help you understand how and when you use electricity. Is your consumption about the same every day or is it much higher than normal on some days? On the days of higher consumption, think about what you may have done differently.
Your home is not your neighbors! Don't compare electric bills with neighbors because their lifestyle, appliances and number of people in the family can differ, causing a difference in usage.
If you feel your bills are still too high, you may consider an energy audit or use our On-Line Energy Audit.
Some other tips to consider:
- Turning the thermostat down to 120 degrees on your electric water heater can save you money. Each 10-degree reduction in water temperature generally saves 3 to 5 percent on water heating costs.
- Plant trees and shrubs to shade air conditioning units and heat pumps, but do not block the airflow. A unit operating in the shade uses as much as 10 percent less electricity than the same one operating in the sun.
- Don't place lamps or televisions near your air conditioner thermostat. The thermostat senses heat from these appliances, which can cause the air conditioner to run longer than necessary.
- In the summer during the day, keep window shades or blinds down and closed to keep heat out of your house.
- Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. The initial cost is higher, but compact fluorescents use 70 percent less energy and last 10 times longer.
- The incandescent light bulb is one of the least efficient users of energy in your home. Only 10 percent of the energy used by the bulb ends up as light-the other 90 percent is lost as heat. Use compact fluorescent bulbs instead.
- Save energy by drying towels and heavier cottons in a separate load from lighter-weight clothes. Also, don't over-dry your clothes. Use a moisture sensor if your machine has one.
- Wash and dry full loads of laundry. Clean the lint filter in the dryer after every load to improve air circulation and efficiency.
- Be sure to place the faucet lever on the kitchen sink in the cold position when using small amounts of water; placing the lever in the hot position uses energy to heat the water even though it never reaches the faucet.
- Keep range-top burners and reflectors clean; they will reflect the heat better, and you will save energy.
- Use your microwave to boil small amounts of water. It uses less electricity than the water heater or stove.
- More tips and Home Energy Solutions can be found by clicking here.
