You just opened up your newest energy bill and you think to yourself, “Ouch! There must be a way to pay less.” Thankfully, the team at Home Comfort Experts has some summer energy saving tips to share. Here are five sure ways to bring your bill down during these scorching summer months.
1. Programmable Thermostat Settings
Install or make use of a programmable thermostat. According to Energy Star “Through proper use of a programmable thermostat (using the four pre-programmed settings) you can save about $180* every year in energy costs.” Used correctly, your bill will be lower, but you won’t have to sacrifice comfort.
Related Read: How to Save 180 a Year with Your Programmable Thermostat
2. Proper Ceiling Fan Use
Set your ceiling fans to rotate counter-clockwise. Now you might ask yourself, “How’s that going to do anything?” but it makes a big difference. Energy Star teaches us, “In the summer, use the ceiling fan in the counterclockwise direction. While standing directly under the ceiling fan you should feel a cool breeze. The airflow produced creates a wind-chill effect, making you ‘feel’ cooler.” This allows you to bump the temperature up a couple of degrees without feeling uncomfortable.
Related Read: 7 Heating, Cooling & Plumbing Myths – Busted
3. Replace Your Light Bulbs with LED Bulbs
Get rid of your heat making, energy draining incandescent bulbs and replace them with LED bulbs. Yes, you’ll pay a few dollars more up front for an LED bulb compared to an incandescent bulb, but in the end you’ll save more money. In fact Consumer Reports states, “LEDs use about 80 to 85 percent less electricity than the incandescent bulbs they replace.”
4. Change Your Drapery
Invest in heat blocking curtains. When you let the sun in your house, you’re also letting the heat in your house. At one time, there was only a depressing black curtain for heat blocking. Now, you can find all kinds of fantastic colors and designs to complement your home.
5. Change Your Filter Every Month
The best way to avoid a costly repair bill is preventative maintenance. One great way to keep your energy bill down and your unit running is to periodically replace your air conditioner filter.
Sal Vaglica from This Old House writes, “Dirty filters kill your AC’s efficiency, so install a new one every month during the cooling season for central and window units (or clean them if you’ve got the washable type). Look for the filter’s minimum efficiency reporting value, or MERV, which ranges from 1 to 12 for home AC units; the higher the number, the better filtration it provides (and the more energy needed to pull air through it, so balance air-quality concerns with energy costs).”