lundi 23 mars 2015

Five Ways To Conserve Money On Your Utility Costs This Summer

By Pete Demuth


Five years ago, I got laid off. This was the peak of the recession, and lots of people were in the very same boat. Although being out of work was horrible, one of the biggest shocks that I got showed up in the form of the electricity bills that we received during the summertime. I didn't know how much cooling cost. Additionally, I was home all day so I had the unit running more than when I was at work. We simply didn't have enough cash to handle such huge bills for the entire summer season. So I created a plan to reduce my household's energy bills while I was out of work. Here are the steps that we took.

Suggestion # 1: To begin with, see to it that you keep your garage door closed throughout the day. An open garage can get unbearably hot. This can force your air conditioner to work even harder when chilling your home. In addition to keeping the heat out, make certain that you keep the cool air in. In particular, seal up any drafty windows that might be letting the cool air out.

Step # 2: I did an audit on the air conditioning system's thermostat. I notice that we had a few lamps quite near the thermostat. I wondered if this was causing the thermostat to supply an incorrect reading about how warm the space was. I transferred the lamps to a different part of the space to make sure that the thermostat was taking an exact temperature.

Idea # 3: Buy an inexpensive programmable thermostat. This will certainly allow you to determine how cool you want your home to be and set up the thermostat to switch off as soon as it gets to that temperature. In addition, programmable thermostats let you set a time for when you really want the air conditioning unit to switch on. For instance, you might set your air conditioner to start 30 minutes prior to you return home from work. This is a great way to conserve cash due to the fact that you will not have to run the system all the time when people are not in the house.

Pointer # 4: Take a look at your lawn. In particular, analyze the exterior compressor for your ac system. If possible, it is best if the compressor sits in the shade. This can be achieved by planting plants or trees near the unit. By some estimates, an air conditioning system that sits in the direct sunlight is 15 % less efficient than one in the shade. See to it that you wipe any dirt, grass, or leaves that might fall into the compressor.

Step # 5: The last step that I took may sound counter-intuitive. I hired a HVAC expert to come out and have a look at the ac system. Even though cash was tight, I wished to see to it that the unit was running effectively and that there weren't any leakages or issues with the ducts. I understood that letting an issue like that fester might cost a ton of cash in the long run. The checkup on the cost me hundred dollars and it ensured me that the a/c was running as effectively as possible.




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