With the Summer months quickly approaching, it’s important to look at ways to conserve energy. With energy costs skyrocketing, it’s important to keep your energy consumption under control. Cristo Homes uses the most up-to-date energy-saving building techniques when building their homes, but there are still more ways that you can help take a chunk out of your electric bill.
The first place to start is with your air conditioner. Be sure that your filters are clean and change them every month. You should also have your air conditioner unit serviced one a year by a licensed HVAC technician. The next step is to go around the house and close the air vents in the rooms that nobody is using. Once you know that your air conditioner is in good running order,and you’re only cooling the rooms that will be occupied, you should set your thermostat to turnoff during the cooler night hours and during the day when nobody’s at home. You can schedule it to turn up when you leave for work in the morning, and then have it come back down about an hour before arrival. You can even consider shutting it off completely when you’re not at home, if your house doesn’t take a long time to cool down. Cristo Homes installs, Lyric Wi-Fi Thermostat by Honeywell, that allows you to manage your thermostat wherever you are.
When your air conditioner is not running, be sure to open windows and leave all of the doors inside of your house open. This will allow the air to circulate. If you have ceiling fans, those can also help to circulate the air. Turning off lights and appliances will also help keep your house cool. Consider drying your dishes by hand and hanging your clothes out to dry. Get in the habit of turning off lights when you’re not in a room. This will save you money all year, not just in thes ummer months.
Using heavy shades, blinds or drapes will help keep the sunlight from heating up your home inthe summer time. While blocking the heat from coming in through the windows, you should also check the sealing around your house. You can use weatherstripping or caulk to seal up areas where you can feel hot air coming in from the outside.
Many electric companies, such as Duke Energy, will send you a free energy saving kit, complete with low wattage light bulbs, a shower nozzle that helps cut down on water usage, and more.You can even receive federal incentives and tax credits for purchasing energy efficient appliances. Not only will you save money each month, but you can get money back on your taxes at the end of the year!
For more energy saving tips, visit energy.gov.