How to Lower your Electric Bill This Spring
1. Have your air conditioning system serviced by a NATE qualified professional. While your heating costs will drop with winter’s departure, warm weather means higher electricity demands. Ensuring your HVAC unit is well maintained and operating efficiently can help reduce electricity usage and costs.
2. Reset your ceiling fans so blades turn counterclockwise. The fan will push air down into the room, creating a cooling breeze. If you don’t have ceiling fans, now is a great time to install them in rooms that get a lot of use, such as family or living rooms and bedrooms.
3. Check the weather stripping and seals around windows and doors. Sealing windows and doors can help keep cool air inside your home. Even if you checked seals before winter arrived, take another look before spring, especially if you experienced extreme temperatures, or snow and ice, in your area this winter.
4. Replace incandescent lights with energy-saving CFLs or LEDs. These energy-efficient bulbs not only use less electricity to produce the same amount of light, they also produce less heat – reducing the demands on your A/C system.
5. Upgrade your window treatments. Blinds and room-darkening drapes can help block out the worst, hottest sun in the summer, helping to keep rooms cooler.
6. If you haven’t already done so, install a programmable thermostat and use it to reduce cooling demands when your home is empty, and increase A/C use when it’s occupied.
7. Cook outdoors. Not only is outdoor grilling fun, your kitchen and house will stay cooler if you avoid using the oven and stove any more than absolutely necessary during warmer months.