Home Energy Savings

Home energy savings start with finding out how much you pay each month on your water and electric bills. Now we have to analyze your home's energy consumption. Some utility companies do energy audits for free, and there are companies who will come to your house and do a thorough examination of your appliances, insulation and even take a thermal photograph to show heat loss. You can do it yourself too. Follow these steps...

• The easiest step by far is lighting. Make a habit of turning them off when you leave the room. Dimmers save you money too. Timers and motion detectors for outside keep the lights sucking electricity all night and even during the day if you forget to turn them off. There's also solar lights. Don't forget energy saving LED bulbs! The more natural light you use the less artificial you use. Look into mirror arrays that bounce sunlight into any room in the house.
• If you have a fireplace look for an open flew.
• If you have a pool with a conventional energy eating heater check out a solar pool heater.
• How old is your water heater? The older it is the less efficient and more costly it is on your bill. Same goes for your AC unit. Sometimes just getting the proper maintenance on your old one can save you a few bucks. Maybe invest in new solar powered ones.
• Check all your windows, doors, walls, plumbing outlets, and light switches for any kind of cracks where heat is escaping (or cool air from the AC during the summer)
• While you're at it... make a run through of your basement and attic as well. Be sure to explore all those crawl spaces you never go in. The Geek advises you bring a broom in case of spider webs. Yuk. See heating and cooling tips page for more in depth details.
• Last but not least solar panels!! EVERYTHING that runs on electricity in your house can be done with the FREE absolutely, positively FREE energy from the sun. To get over the initial cost fear read Solar Energy Advantages Disadvantages page.

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