How to Reduce Your Home Energy Costs
Keep your vents open., Use fans strategically., Wash your laundry in cold water., Adjust your thermostat when you aren’t at home., Turn off surge protectors when not in use.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Keep your vents open.
One of the easiest ways to reduce energy costs is to make sure all of your vents are open and unblocked.
While many people believe a closed vent will save them money, the opposite is true.
Closing the vent changes the temperature in that spot, but it makes the HVAC work that much harder to get the temperature consistent with the temperature on the thermostat.Make sure your intake vents have clean air filters.
Blocked air filters force the HVAC to work harder to circulate air, which increases your power bills and shortens the life of your HVAC system. -
Step 2: Use fans strategically.
The smart use of fans is a great way to cut down on your energy costs.
Because hot air rises and cold air sinks, circulating the air homogenizes the air temperature in the room.
Since that’s usually what your HVAC is doing, the use of fans allows the HVAC to rest more.Ceiling fans or freestanding fans both work for this.
In the summer, the ceiling fans should be rotating counterclockwise, and the freestanding fans should be pointing toward the ceiling.
In winter, reverse it. , Up to 90% of your washing machine’s energy usage is attributable to heating water.
About 13% of a home’s energy usage is attributable to heating water and another 13% is attributable to appliances, so this has the potential to cut down on both.
You should also avoid overfilling your washer.
While it doesn’t make much of a difference for the washer’s energy usage, a cramped drier has to stay on for longer, and that will require more energy. , Simply adjusting your thermostat by about ten degrees for eight hours per day will cut your energy usage by about ten percent.
Since you aren’t home anyway, those are ten degrees you shouldn’t miss.Some people are under the impression that the energy spent returning your home to the normal temperature will cancel out the savings from the ten degree adjustment.
This is untrue.
While it does have an effect, it isn’t a large enough effect to cancel out a workday’s worth of savings.
Another sneaky factor that might be raising your energy costs is a distortion in the temperature caused by placing heat sources next to thermostat.
If you move heat sources like lamps and televisions away from the thermostat, it will get a more accurate reading of the temperature in your house. , It’s a good idea to use surge protectors anyway, as they will save your electrical equipment from the kind of sudden surges in electricity that happen when lighting strikes.
But by turning off surge protectors when not in use, you minimize the use of electricity (and production of heat) by large clumps of electronics. -
Step 3: Wash your laundry in cold water.
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Step 4: Adjust your thermostat when you aren’t at home.
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Step 5: Turn off surge protectors when not in use.
Detailed Guide
One of the easiest ways to reduce energy costs is to make sure all of your vents are open and unblocked.
While many people believe a closed vent will save them money, the opposite is true.
Closing the vent changes the temperature in that spot, but it makes the HVAC work that much harder to get the temperature consistent with the temperature on the thermostat.Make sure your intake vents have clean air filters.
Blocked air filters force the HVAC to work harder to circulate air, which increases your power bills and shortens the life of your HVAC system.
The smart use of fans is a great way to cut down on your energy costs.
Because hot air rises and cold air sinks, circulating the air homogenizes the air temperature in the room.
Since that’s usually what your HVAC is doing, the use of fans allows the HVAC to rest more.Ceiling fans or freestanding fans both work for this.
In the summer, the ceiling fans should be rotating counterclockwise, and the freestanding fans should be pointing toward the ceiling.
In winter, reverse it. , Up to 90% of your washing machine’s energy usage is attributable to heating water.
About 13% of a home’s energy usage is attributable to heating water and another 13% is attributable to appliances, so this has the potential to cut down on both.
You should also avoid overfilling your washer.
While it doesn’t make much of a difference for the washer’s energy usage, a cramped drier has to stay on for longer, and that will require more energy. , Simply adjusting your thermostat by about ten degrees for eight hours per day will cut your energy usage by about ten percent.
Since you aren’t home anyway, those are ten degrees you shouldn’t miss.Some people are under the impression that the energy spent returning your home to the normal temperature will cancel out the savings from the ten degree adjustment.
This is untrue.
While it does have an effect, it isn’t a large enough effect to cancel out a workday’s worth of savings.
Another sneaky factor that might be raising your energy costs is a distortion in the temperature caused by placing heat sources next to thermostat.
If you move heat sources like lamps and televisions away from the thermostat, it will get a more accurate reading of the temperature in your house. , It’s a good idea to use surge protectors anyway, as they will save your electrical equipment from the kind of sudden surges in electricity that happen when lighting strikes.
But by turning off surge protectors when not in use, you minimize the use of electricity (and production of heat) by large clumps of electronics.
About the Author
Alan Rivera
Alan Rivera specializes in lifestyle and practical guides and has been creating helpful content for over 12 years. Alan is committed to helping readers learn new skills and improve their lives.
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