As we all know, there are many different ways to save energy in your home. Recently, the Department of Energy teamed up with the Ad Council to create two public service announcements as part of its national consumer education campaign to help consumers save money by saving energy. These PSAs offer consumers and renters simple tips and tricks to cut back on their energy bills through energy conservation in their homes and properties. More specifically, these PSAs highlight no-cost tips, which should leave viewers with knowledge on how to save without spending a dime.
Below, you’ll find a summary of some of the main tips from the DOE public service announcements:
- Wasted air means wasted money. By properly air sealing and weather-stripping your home, you can quickly save a ton of wasted energy and instantly cut back on energy bills. We recently wrote a detailed post on the importance of weather-stripping, which you can read here.
- Turning your thermostat down during the cold months even a few degrees eight hours a day or more can have drastic savings on the amount of energy required to heat your home. In fact, reducing the set temperature by 7-10 degrees for eight hours a day can save you as much as 10 percent a year on heating and cooling costs.
- As we mentioned in this water heating post, reducing the temperature on your water heater can also have a big impact on your energy usage. We detailed additional savings tips for your water heater in our blog post, so please check that out to find out more on this topic.
- It’s a common misconception that strictly using hot water in your washing machine will result in cleaner clothing. Using cool or cold water can be just as effective at getting your clothing clean and can save you a bundle on heating your water.
- Don’t use energy you don’t need! Even a change as simple as using the auto-sleep function on your computer, you can save as much as $30 per year on your electric bill. That’s just one small awareness change that can lead to big savings on electricity.
- Building on the last tip, don’t forget to unplug all appliances when not in use. Shockingly, in the average home, 75 percent of the electricity used to power electronics and appliances is consumed while the products are turned off, which could cost about $100 a year.
As we mentioned, these are just a few tips you can follow to save money by saving energy. Small, simple changes can make a big impact on your energy bottom line. We also recently wrote about energy savings tips specific to summer for ways homeowners can save money during the hottest times of the year. At BelRed, we’re extremely conscious of energy savings and want to be as informative as possible to consumers regarding this topic. If you’d like to discuss ways to reduce your energy consumption and cut back on energy bills in your home, please contact us today.
