10 Dec Winter is Here: Money Saving Tips for your Utilities

Winter is coming – be prepared with the following tips to help you conserve energy and save on utility costs.

Utility Cost Saving Tips:

Close your curtains or blinds during the day:

You would think that natural light would help to warm up your house. However, closing windows and blinds can save you a great amount of energy in the winter. During cold nights, heat is lost through windows.  Closing the blinds adds insulation to the windows, reducing heat loss.

Be sure that the main thermostat in the living area is set to heat for your unit to work properly:

Before the winter season, it is important to inspect your heater and make sure there are no maintenance issues.  Faulty features can be wasteful and eat up your energy bill. It is common for appliances to wear when they are not being used months at a time. If you notice anything unusual, make sure to call your tech to take a look before it is too late and you are too cold!

Keep all windows and doors shut:

Not only will keeping all of your windows and doors shut tightly help with any draft coming through, but it can improve energy efficiency throughout the house. By doing so, it will limit the amount of air movement required. It will also keep the heat or cool air in place. This small task should lower costs and save you money on utility bills.

Run the dishwasher only when it is full:

Doing so will help you reduce water waste and save on energy. Plus, you will not have to run it as often!

Wash clothes in cold water, using a high spin cycle:

The high spin cycle on the washer machine pulls more moisture from your clothing. This strategy will help you save energy because your dryer will run for a shorter time to dry and fluff your laundry.

Limit your hot water usage: 

The average American shower uses roughly 17 gallons of water and lasts for around 8 minutes. By taking shorter showers and turning the water off while brushing your teeth you can make a huge difference in your daily water usage. Here is a fun tip: play your favorite song and see if you can finish your shower before the song ends. This can cut your water usage by more than 50 percent. Be mindful of water usage throughout your day and you can help save literal tons of water.

Turn off lights and ceiling fans when you leave a room:

This is a common rule passed down from our parents. It may be obvious, but turning off the lights and fans can help save energy; up to an average of .06 kilowatt-hours or 1.2 cents per hour.

Keep thermostats set at specific temperatures:

During the summer months, it is suggested to keep the thermostat set to 74F or higher during summer months and 65F or lower during winter months. If you really want to save energy and more money on your bills, you can save up to 1 percent per year on your heating bill for each degree you set back the thermostat for eight hours. You can easily make this adjustment when you’re sleeping or at work.

Unplug unused appliances and devices:

Did you know that you can save up to 15 percent on energy usage simply by unplugging your small appliances?  Devices like mobile phones, laptop chargers, toasters, coffee makers, hair tools, etc. are around your host using “ghost energy” without you noticing!  The act of unplugging these items around the house will become a habit the more you do it. Little by little you will see a difference in your energy bill.

We hope these tips can help you be more mindful of the energy we use each day and save you more money in the long run! If you have any questions or additional tips, we’d love to hear from you.