The increasing cost of energy bills could place a strain on your household budget. However, you have the power to save energy and money.
Saving energy decreases the country’s overall demand for resources required to generate energy and enhancing your energy efficiency is similar to adding another clean source of energy to the electric power grid.
Furthermore, an energy-efficient home will keep you comfortable while generating savings. Here are easy and practical solutions that you should integrate in your home.
1. Seal air leaks
Ensure you deal with any overlooked gaps, cracks, openings around your doors, windows, and plumbing. Sealing will save you over 10% on your heating bills. Begin by weather-stripping or caulking around windows.
Make sure you fill in cracks around your door frames with caulk and while you are at it, fit an adhesive-backed or screw-on door sweep. For bigger gaps around electrical and plumbing work, expanding-foam sealants are ideal, particularly where pipes enter your home via exterior walls.
2. Heat and Air Conditioning
If your home has heat or air conditioning, check the vents to see if they’re closed. Once you open them, you’ll discover that they will no longer struggle to keep your apartment cool and won’t keep running after attaining its target temperature.
Some people believe that closed vents can decrease energy consumption by preventing the need to heat or cool a certain room. However, this is inaccurate. In reality, closed vents actually increase your energy costs.
It’s important to note that vents use air filters to preventing dust, dirt, and unwanted stuff from blowing through your home. Consider picking a bulk pack at your local hardware store and ensure you measure your vents’ size.
3. Floor Insulation
If your home has wall and loft insulation, perhaps you should consider floor insulation. You could lose approximately 15% of your home’s heat through the floor, so insulating the floor will not only keep your toes warmer but also save you money.
There are numerous options for insulating floors depending on the type. You can insulate suspend timber flooring by lifting the floorboards and providing insulation between the joists.
Alternatively, you could insulate from beneath if you have access from a basement or cellar. It’s important to note that solid floors can be a bit challenging.
You can insulate the floor when it requires replacement or you could place rigid insulation boards above the solid floor. You can then cover the boards with chipboard and your preferable flooring.
4. Improve Your Home’s Airflow
Trapping the appropriate temperature in your home frequently needs more than good airflow. Unless your living space is very small, even heat and central air can have a difficult time keeping every room at the same, stable temperature.
During hot temperatures, heat will escape via the higher areas of your home such as the ceiling. In this case, you should push the air upwards. On the other hand, during cold temperatures, you don’t want heat escaping, so you must push it down. You’ll discover that fans make both tasks achievable.
5. Substitute Worn Weatherstripping
Torn and worn weather stripping around windows and doors produces drafts, allowing the entry of cold. 7-12% of a home’s heat loss occurs around doors and windows.
These leaks will eventually prompt you to turn your furnace to remain comfortable. Even if you don’t turn it up, they lose warm air, causing your furnace to work harder.
6. Cover Patio Doors and Windows with Plastic Film
Windows account for 25% of homes’ heat loss and covering the patio doors and windows with clear film can decrease that loss. The clear film is affordable and easy to put on.
7. Electric fans
Instead of running your air conditioner constantly, consider an electric fan. You’ll discover they use minimal electricity in comparison to an air conditioner even if they are continuously on.
Final Thoughts
If you’re thinking of decreasing your energy bills without spending a lot of money, these invaluable tips will help you do so.
For more information on how you can reduce your energy bill, contact us at Apartment Agents or leave other suggestions.
Image: Flickr