5 Ways to Make Your Home More Energy Efficient

If you own your home then you understand how energy costs can take a good chunk of money out of your paychecks. But there are a lot of things you can do around your home that will help you save money here and there. Add all the little things you change and fix around your home and they turn into saving you a lot. This article will give you tips on being energy efficient and how to act upon them. Not only will you save money but you'll be doing your own little part of being more green and helping the environment through lessened energy usage.

Home Lighting

Lighting is one of the most obvious and the easiest place to begin energy saving techniques. By replacing the lights bulbs in your most frequently used lights in your home with compact-fluorescent lights you can save more than sixty dollars a year in electricity costs. Compact-fluorescent light bulbs use around seventy-percent less energy compared to incandescent bulbs and last much longer than them also. So you also end up saving money, in the long run, buying compact fluorescent light bulbs too. Just remember to also turn off the lights in a room when they're no in use for even more savings.

Air-Conditioning

If you're thinking of buying an air-conditioner, with the days already warming up for the summer, choosing one that is energy efficient is a must. They're, of course, marked with the Energy Star symbol. Most models, regardless of brand, are known to use ten-percent less energy than non-energy efficient air-conditioners. In winter, it's important to cover your air conditioner with an air-conditioner cover to keep heat from escaping out through the air conditioner. If you have a window-placed air-conditioner, just remove it from the window for the winter months.

Heating

For your heat source, the best way to save energy and money is to install a programmable thermostat for customized temperature settings for when you're asleep or not at home. A programmable thermostat, when properly set, can save over one-hundred twenty dollars a year in energy costs. The most energy efficient settings are usually the default setting for the thermostat. But it's best to do a little tweaking of the temperature settings to what you think is proper for your area to keep your the less-heated parts of your house and especially your basement's pipes from getting too cold. Just make sure all your heat registers are not covered by furniture or anything else to permit the air to circulate better. If you use radiators to heat your home it's best to have heat reflectors to get optimal heating from the radiators. If it is a sunny winter day you can also help heat your house by leaving your curtains open and let the sun do the work and then close them at night to keep more heat in.

Home Electronics

Electronics are quickly becoming one of the most power-consuming devices in your home. They account for nearly fifteen percent of your house's power usage. To add to it, most electronics tend to still use electricity even when turned off. Of course, the first step is when buying new electronics is nearly done for you since most electronics are marked with "Energy Star" to show they've been made and proven through testing to be energy efficient.

As for your other electronic devices there are still things you can do to save energy. Devices such as battery chargers and charging cell phones should be unplugged when not in use or when the batteries are fully charged. If you have electronics around your home that are rarely used then unplug those too. If going on a trip it's smart to unplug your bigger electronics like computers, televisions, uninterruptable power supply devices and anything else you believe uses electricity when idle.

Other Utilities and Appliances

A ten minute shower uses less water than a full bath. Yet with water-conserving parts, such as a low flow shower head, a ten minute shower can end up using less than or around twenty gallons of water. You can save nearly five gallons of water in comparison to a normal bath. Which, over the year, can add up to one-hundred forty dollars or more a year off your electricity bill. It's also smart to have a ventilation fan to control the humidity and moisture in your bathroom after finishing showers and baths.

If you have a dishwasher it's best to scrape the food scraps off your dishes instead using more water by rinsing them in your sink beforehand. If you have a modern dishwasher it should have no problem, when used with detergents, to remove the food themselves. It's also best to wash dishes in your dishwasher when you have enough for a full dishwasher load. To save more energy let the dishes air-dry.

Much like a dishwasher, only use your washer when you've accumulated a full load. If you only have a partial load of clothes then adjust the water level accordingly. You can save three-thousand or so gallons of water a year with full loads. Use cold water whenever you can also. Hot water cleaning in the washer accounts for eighty-five to ninety percent of the energy used by your washer. So if your clothes and water hardness permit you can get by just using cold water to clean your clothes with appropriate detergents. Doing this can save you forty-five dollars or more a year using an electric water heater and an estimated thirty dollars a year with a gas water heater. When drying your clothes it's best to air dry them, versus using the dryer, to save energy. If you only have the choice to use your dryer then make sure to dry a full load and avoid over-drying the clothes if you don't have a moisture sensor shutoff feature. Especially when drying partial loads. Letting a dryer operate the extra and unneeded time can cost you an extra forty dollars a year if run for fifteen minutes extra. The last thing is to clean the lint trap, when finishing drying a load of clothes, to allow the heat to flow throughout the dryer properly. This last step can save you up to thirty dollars a each year.