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Tips on Saving Energy in Your Home
By Tony Lee
Winter is just around the corner and soon we'll be turning up the heat to stay warm. With the economy making us squeeze every penny to the breaking point, it might be a good idea to look for ways to save on the utility bill. Heating your Home
Mother Nature can be a big help when it comes to heating your home in winter. One of the things that we do is to ensure that we open all shades and drapes facing the south. This allows natural sunlight to warm the house and reduce the need of the heater. You would be surprised how much heat can be generated just by opening your drapes and letting the sun in. At night time of course, you'll need to keep the heat in, and that is the key. Check your windows for drafty spots that allow air from the outside to enter the house. A good way to seal the window is to purchase thick clear plastic at your local hardware store. Tape the plastic to the inside of the window frame. The majority of cold air that enters your house is through the window glass. Changing your drapes and curtains to a thicker material in winter helps as well. Check other areas in your home where cold air may be entering, such as water pipes. Just recently, I found a fairly large air draft underneath our kitchen sink where the water pipe entered our house. I quickly sealed the leak with caulking compound. Do a thorough check of your home and I'm sure you can find similar air leaks. If you have a fireplace, keep the damper closed and check the seal. If you have glass doors on your fireplace, keep them closed. Setting your thermostat to 68 degrees is a good practice to get into. At this temperature, you should be reasonably comfortable with normal activity. A programmable thermostat should be used. Appliances
Keeping your refrigerator's operating temperature between 36-38 degrees and the freezer at 0-5 degrees is best. Don't leave the door open when using your refrigerator, close it as soon as you remove an item. Here's a biggy: Transformers and power strips. Did you know that even if an appliance that uses an adapter/transformer is off, it's still using electricity? Feel it. Is it warm to the touch with the appliance off? That’s because until it's removed from the plug, it's still using current. Here is what I do. The best example of misuse is probably your computer. Speakers, external drives, and monitors use those big fat adapters. I make sure that I remove them from sockets or turn power strips completely off. This ensures that these appliances do not draw any unused current. A few months of effort in this area will yield big savings on your electric bill. Check your cell phone charger, I bet it's using a small transformer! How about that entertainment center in the living room? You get the idea. Your laundry room. Wash only full loads of clothes and dry loads one after the other, as soon as possible. An already warm dryer, is much more efficient than a cold one. Lighting. There are many types of energy saving bulbs out there on the market. They do pay off in the long term and to me; seem to provide a better light. Make sure your family develops a habit of turning lights off. Planning on leaving the room for 5 minutes or more? Turn off the light. If need be, post small signs on switches as a reminder. Trust me, it really works! Water and Water Heaters
Check the thermostat on your water heater. It's best to set it to around 120 degrees. You will still be able to wash dishes and shower at that temperature. Speaking of showers, this is another saver. Rather than taking those long hot showers, keep it to five minutes. And take showers, not baths. I know you'll be missing the champagne and candles, but you'll save about 15 gallons of hot water in the long run. Buying water saving shower heads is a good investment and adds to the savings. Got leaky faucets? Fix'em, especially if it is the hot water side. Use your sink to wash your dishes as opposed to your dishwasher. A dish pan with warm soapy water saves much more water than your dishwasher will. Hand drying dishes uses no energy at all, as compared to the large heating coil in the dishwasher. You’re bound to have "dish pan hands", but your electric bill will be "silky smooth"! These are just a few areas that you can focus on when it comes to lowering utility costs. We found that in order for this to work, the entire family should participate, especially when it comes to water usage. Check around the house and see what you can find to reduce your bill even more. It's a mixture of planning and commitment that will make saving energy in your home, successful. And if your wife is like mine, she'll try to convince you that taking her out to dinner every night will save BIG on the electricity bill. So far, her plan hasn't worked.
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Contributor's Note
Q: How many Californians does it take to change a light bulb? A: Six. One to turn the bulb, one for support, and four to relate to the experience.
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This intel was contributed by Tony Lee
Tony Lee
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May, 2012
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