How To Lower Your Energy Bills One Step At A Time

With the ever increases in energy costs, most homeowners are looking to save money on energy bills where they can. There is also a greater awareness of the environmental costs of fossil fuel based energy usage to further motivate homeowners to reduce their energy footprints. Taking steps to make the home more energy efficient and upgrading home systems to either use less energy from the grid or utilize solar energy is a win-win proposition.

The greatest return on investment is to increase the home's energy efficiency. Adding insulation, caulking every crack, weather stripping doors and windows are the first areas to address since heating and air conditioning are the most energy-hungry systems in the home. Get a programmable thermostat that automatically adjusts the interior temperature to avoid unnecessary energy usage when no one is home. Program it to lower the temperature at night in the winter and use added blankets or electric blankets for warmth to save money. Ceiling fans can keep rooms equally comfortable at higher temperatures in the summer, further saving on air conditioning costs.

Be conscious of turning off appliances when they are not in use. Many appliances use energy in stand-by mode even when they are not in use such as entertainment electronics and computers. You can save money by plugging these appliances into electrical strips and turning off power to all of them with a single switch. When incandescent bulbs burn out, replace them with CFL bulbs that use dramatically less energy and do not produce the heat of the old bulbs that make air conditioning work harder. Only run the dishwasher, clothes washer and dryer when you have full loads to avoid wasting energy. If you can, hang dry clothes rather than machine dry to not only save on energy costs but increase the life of the clothing.

When it's time to replace appliances, especially air conditioning and heating units, choose the most energy efficient units you can afford. They will cost a bit more upfront but will pay for themselves over time with the savings in energy bills. A solar water heater gives you one of the best returns on the investment since it can be essentially free of cost to operate. Additionally, there are very attractive tax credit and power company incentives that will pay a significant portion of the cost of the solar water heater and installation. A solar water heater adds to the equity of your home as well, making it more attractive to buyers when you're ready to sell.

Every step taken to improve the energy efficiency of your home is one that benefits both you and the environment.

About the Author:
COOL BLEW PLUMBING (http://www.coolblew.com/) is a solar water heater phoenix has been in the business since 2002 and plumbing in Phoenix.

Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com

Tags: solar water heater phoenix

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