Energy Savings Tips

5 Tips to Help Make Your Home More Energy-Efficient

Turning your home green benefits the environment, but it also keeps you from wasting money on unnecessary water heating, lighting and air conditioning costs. The following tips will help you reap the benefits of living in a more energy-efficient home.

1) Sealing and Insulation

“If life is like a candle bright

Death must be the wind.

You can close your window tight

And it still comes blowing in.”

The above words, from a song by Moe Brandy, contemplate the shortness of life. Yet they also reflect a basic truth in energy-efficiency. Wind seeps through every crack. To reduce the expenses of home air conditioning, your home must be properly sealed and insulated.

Older homes in particular, but even some recently constructed homes, can lack the most cost-efficient means of regulating the effects of external air flow. Perhaps your home does not include the advantages of current construction technology. Spending money on new energy-efficient windows and doors can amount to huge long-term savings.

2) Tankless Water Heater

Modern tankless water heaters save energy by functioning on a “demand only” basis. Rather than wasting energy on continuously heating and storing hot water, the systems anticipate the current hot water needs in a home. For example: The Rheem Prestige™ Series of tankless water heaters are ideal for full-size families. The units provide sufficient hot water to:

• Start the laundry
• Bathe the kids
• Start the dishes
• And enable you to relax in the aftermath by dipping beneath a relaxing hot shower.

3) Light Bulbs

For years, the local utilities company has been pushing energy-efficient light bulbs. It’s a wise choice, so don’t keep lagging in the game. Traditional light bulbs are still available, but they seem such a wasted option. It’s time to make the plunge; go with energy-efficient lighting today.

4) Programmable Thermostat

State-of-the-art heating and cooling is different from ever before. Modern units enable automated air conditioning control during vacations, brief overnight trips or even at the far away summer cottage. Programmable thermostats are easy to monitor, enable exact control of heating and cooling systems and help you save money on energy consumption. If your home system lacks the efficiency of a programmable thermostat, consider making an immediate upgrade.

5) Energy-Efficient Air Conditioning Equipment

If your air conditioner or furnace is not working correctly, do something to correct the problem. Air conditioning repair is much less expensive than the cost of operating a poorly functioning heating and cooling system. Many older homes lack central cooling and heating. When accurately sized for the home, installed correctly and regulated with an efficient thermostat system, central air conditioning provides advanced performance, less energy consumption and better home comfort.

If your home is already running on a central system, stop letting it struggle in a needless battle. Any unit that is correctly sized for the home, properly ducted, filtered and primed for energy-efficient operation should easily keep up with the heating and cooling needs within an adequately sealed and insulated home.

If your home HVAC equipment is just sitting there, spinning out cool air in the winter and warm air in the summer, you are being hi-jacked by a needless energy bill.

Conclusion

With even a few home improvements, it is possible to increase the energy-efficiency standards of your home. Even the costly upgrades and replacements will eventually pay for themselves. Go with a win-win solution. Use these five tips to help make your home more energy-efficient.