Saving Energy In Your Home With These Tips
How energy-efficient is your home? Are there things you could be doing that would save energy in your home that you haven’t tried? As we approach the spring and summer seasons, many homeowners unknowingly increase their home’s energy bill by 30% or more. Read on for the 5 things you should consider when saving energy in your home in the upcoming months.
1.Buy Heavy Curtains for Added Insulation and Comfort
With spring here and summer approaching, you may be starting to think about ways to keep the sun from heating up the interior of your home. Consider adding some nice textured curtains to your windows. Not only will these additions help keep the harsh sun rays off your furniture, they will keep the cold air from leaking out and hot air from leaking in. You can refer to HGTV’s article for additional tips on energy-saving window coverings.
2. Evaluate Your Energy Consumption
Once you have decided that saving energy in your home is a goal you want to tackle in the upcoming months, it is a good idea to evaluate your family’s current energy consumption. Having this information will give you an accurate picture of what steps you need to take to save more energy. Take a look at your utility bills and see what time of year they are the most expensive. You can also hire a professional to perform an energy inspection to identify areas of air infiltration or leaks with a technology called thermal imaging. By exposing these areas and sealing any gaps, you will save energy in your home this summer by keeping cool air inside.
3. Take a Closer Look at Water Consumption
Water consumption is one of the first areas that you should consider when saving energy in your home. Some of the main reasons for water loss are lengthy showers, leaking faucets, faulty plumbing, or excess watering in gardens and backyards. Leaky faucets should be repaired as soon as possible and can often be fixed with a few tools from the hardware store. If you are watering your lawn or garden, set your sprinkler on a timer so that you don’t forget about it and leave it on for too long. Shortening your shower time is always a good idea as well, and you can also turn the water off while you are applying soap and shampoo.
4. Saving Energy in Your Home With a Light Timer
Buying energy-saving light switches and timers can help you cut back on another one of the biggest energy wasters in the home, electric lights. The timers are very inexpensive and readily available at your local hardware or home improvement store. These simple to install and use gadgets allow you to automatically turn your home lights on and off at set times throughout the day. For instance, you can keep the lights off for most of the day during spring and summer then turn them on only for a few hours in the evening.
5. Solar Panels for Saving Energy and Possible Additional Benefits
You’ve probably heard about solar panels and have seen them advertised on television, in print, and online, but what exactly are the panels and how do they help you benefit from natural sunlight when saving energy in your home? Solar panels attract sunlight and use it to create a usable energy source that goes to the home’s energy panel. Besides reducing your energy consumption by using natural sunlight, you may qualify for a tax deduction or discounts.
Homeworx Services, Inc. provides home inspection services including energy inspections. Our energy inspections all include the use of thermal imaging so that we can see potential areas of air loss. If you are interested in saving energy in your home as the weather gets warmer, contact us to schedule your energy inspection.