Remember to Change or Clean Your Air Filter This Winter
A Consumer Reports National Research Center poll found 40% of consumers are worried about money or the economy this holiday season.
So here is a gift that keeps giving – energy saving retro-fits that quickly pay for themselves.
- Use an Incense Stick to Spot Air Leaks – Hold an incense stick near your windows, doors, and electrical outlets on a windy day. If the smoke blows sideways, you’ve got a leak that should be plugged with weatherstripping, caulk, or expandable foam.
- Check Furnace Filters – Be sure to clean or replace your HVAC system’s filter frequently.
- Install a Programmable Thermostat – Programmable thermostats help slice up to 10 percent off your yearly heating bills by automatically turning down temperatures 10 to 15 degrees for 8 hours a day.
- Insulate Water Heaters and Pipes – You can wrap hot-water pipes that run from the water heater with foam. Also consider lowering your water-heater temperature from 130 degrees to 120 for a total annual savings of roughly $75.
- Put in a Low-Flow Showerhead – Water heating alone accounts for nearly 15 percent of your energy bill. Low-flow showerheads can trim your home’s water use by up to 50 percent.
- Stop Pre-Rinsing Dishes – Skipping the pre-rinsing can save about $75 and up to 6,500 gallons of water per household per year.
- Insulate Your Attic Door – Whether you have pull-down stairs, an attic door, or a hatch, insulate that access with fiberglass or rigid foam-board insulation and weather stripping to prevent hot air from escaping your home.
- Switch to Smarter Lightbulbs – CFL and LED bulbs use about 75 percent less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs. That adds up to a savings of some $52 per bulb for CFLs and $65 to $400 per bulb for LEDs over the life of the bulb.
- Toss Old Refrigerators – Many home centers offer free haul-away and recycling of old fridges. Check with your local cooperative to see if they have a recycling program as well.
- Put Your Computer to Sleep – Save $75 or more per computer per year by using the standby or hibernate setting.
Check out this Consumer Reports Article for more information.
The easiest way to make your home more energy efficient is to seal any air leaks, and one that is often overlooked is the bathroom ventilation fan and exhaust vent. The back-draft flap these units come with do a very poor job of stopping leaks. To address this issue, I use a replacement insert fan from the Larson Fan Company. Their fans has a true damper built in, that does a great job in keeping warm air in during the winter and hot, humid air out in the summer. This product has reduced my annual energy bills by over ten percent. It saves the most when air conditioning is being used.
VERY good ideas! Here is one that, I believe, most people don’t think about. It takes a LOT of erergy to heat water. The colder the water, of course the more energy it takes to heat it to a given temperature. SO the less hot water we use, the more we save on our energy bill, AND water bill. Just think, for centuries there was no such thing as a hot water heater, & people survived! There are MANY ways to save money, we need to ask God for Wisdom, knowledge, & guidance daily.
I will just get right to them:
1) I placed a timer on my electric water heater and set it to shut off between 10PM and 6AM,
2) set the water heater @ 120 degrees,
3) installed low flow shower heads on all showers,
4) placed all electronic components on a power switch and use it to cut them on and off with to eliminate phantom power,
5) set fridge @ 38 degrees and freezer @ 5 degrees and cleaned coils,
6) bought energy star front loading washer
7) bought energy star rated LED TV