Tips to Reduce Your Utility Bills During Summer Season

To make the indoor environment more comfortable, most people will obviously crank up the furnace settings in the winter (and the AC in the summer). Although that will deliver you better comfort, the utility bills that will rise along with the temperature will be another story.

Most people reduce the temperatures on their thermostat to have a cooler home in summers but any HVAC system that has to work more to maintain a temperature quite different from local temperature will use more energy and send your utility bills soaring.

There are many easy hacks for HVAC systems and other appliances that you can try at home, to ensure that your utility bills are not through the roof.

Install a programmable thermostat

This is the most important part of your HVAC system. A programmable thermostat will allow you to lower the room temperature at night and keep it slightly high during the day.

This helps reduce energy bills by almost 6-8%. If you do not have a programmable thermostat, you will be using too much of energy to keep your house cool even when it is not necessary.

Change air filters and get your AC serviced

Your AC can provide optimum cooling when it is running in top condition. Regular cleaning and maintenance of the AC ensures that it does not consume too much energy for cooling. Before the summer season begins, get your AC serviced from HVAC professionals.

This will include checking coolant levels, leaks and gear lubrication. Change air filters regularly or when they are dirty and clogged with debris.

Use smart chargers with auto turn-off feature

All members of the house charge their phones, laptops, iPads, or Kindle devices. These are often left plugged in even after they are fully charged.

This results in high consumption and wastage of energy. Invest in smart chargers for your devices that automatically switch off when the device is fully charged. You could save on average $180 a year on your energy bill with this hack.

Ensure that doors and windows seal tightly

All the cooling that your AC provides will be for naught if the cool air indoors is escaping out from open or leaky doors and windows.

By not allowing any draft in or out of your house, you can save almost 10% on your energy bills. If you notice drafts even when your doors and windows are tightly shut, try weather stripping them or use draft guards.

Watering the garden must be done in the evening

If you are watering your garden and plants during the day time during the scorching summer, you are in fact wasting water as it will quickly evaporate and not benefit your lawn at all.

Instead, watering plants in the evening after the sun has gone down or early in the morning will save water and your plants too. Water them near the roots as water on the leaves will quickly evaporate.

Replace old appliances

It may be a genuine investment to consider but old appliances are not very energy efficient. It is best to replace them with Energy Star rated appliances