As things begin to heat up in the Mid-Ohio area, thoughts turn to air conditioning. While you keep cool, however, it’s also important to keep your energy bills down. Here are some handy tips on how to get started:
- Use a programmable thermostat. Don’t pay to cool your home when it’s empty. Program your thermostat according to your daily and weekly schedule. During the cooling season, it should raise the temperature while you’re away or asleep, and lower it a short while before you awake or arrive home, to achieve savings on your energy bills.
- Schedule maintenance for your air conditioner. One of the best investments you can make is keeping your HVAC equipment properly maintained. A dirty, inefficiently operating unit will cost more to operate, and may break down just when you need it most, resulting in a large repair bill.
- Cut back on hot water usage. Take cooler, shorter showers, run the dishwasher and washing machine full, and consider hanging your laundry out to dry when possible. Adjust your settings to wash in warm or cold water, and always rinse in cold.
- Cook outdoors. Operating your stove or oven in the summer not only uses energy, it can also heat your home as well, requiring even more energy to cool it down. Cook outdoors as much as possible, or use your microwave, which is friendlier on your energy bills.
- Check for leaks. You’re paying good money for conditioned air, so don’t let it escape through leaks or cracks. Check the seals around doors and windows, as well as baseboards, ceilings, electrical outlets and vents.
- Turn off lights and appliances when not in use. Use a power strip for electronics such as your computer, television and home audio, and turn it off when you are not using the equipment.
For more hints on how to lower your energy bills this summer, give us a call at Joe Behr Plumbing and Heating. For over 45 years, we have been proudly serving residents of the Mid-Ohio area.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about energy bills and other HVAC topics, visit our website.
Joe Behr Plumbing and Heating, Inc. services the Mid-Ohio area.
