Simple Changes for Big Savings: Boost Your Home's Energy Efficiency
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Fortunately, many energy-saving changes can be made at home without needing large-scale renovations or expensive upgrades. Minor changes and conscious alterations can lead to huge savings on energy bills while reducing your own carbon footprint at the same time. Now, let's explore some practical strategies that significantly impact without high costs.
The easiest way of saving energy is improving the lighting in the house since it is easy to execute. Traditional light bulbs have a poor life span and use quite a lot of energy. You may replace these with an LED bulb that will save up to 75% of power compared to conventional light bulbs. In any case, LEDs last much longer—up to 25 times more, saving replacement costs. Imagine this: changing out ten incandescent bulbs to LEDs in a house, for example, at a savings of about $1 per month each for electricity costs, would amount to $120 a year. When gathering those savings over the life of the bulbs, the total amount saved is notable.
Next, let's address your thermostat. Most of these homes still have manual thermostats, which poorly perform at heating and cooling. That suggested installing a programmable or smart thermostat that automatically changed the temperature according to your preset schedule; the heated or cooled home was only when needed. For example, it can lower when you're at work and then heat up before you get into the house. Such a simple change can save you up to 10% on heating and cooling costs alone. If your energy bill is $200 a month, that will save you almost $240 a year.
The other most often ignored thing is insulation in your house. While wholesale insulation projects are egregiously costly, many more minor, more focused improvements are drastically less expensive. For starters, plug the holes and cracks around your windows, doors, and other entry points. All that's needed to fill those drafts—forcing your heating and cooling systems to do much more work than necessary—is a tube of caulk and some weatherstripping. According to the Department of Energy, sealing such leaks can save you as much as 20% off your heating and cooling bills. That's $480 in savings if your annual energy costs are $2,400.
Appliances come in the next place after lighting and thermostats because they consume the majority of a home's energy. One common home appliance that uses a lot of electricity to keep food fresh is the refrigerator. Investing in a new, energy-efficient refrigerator is one of the best methods to cut energy use over time by up to 15% each year. The report states that an old refrigerator might use 450 kW annually; thus, it is necessary to change it for a better model that might use only 200 kWh, which is half as much. If the average price of electricity is 16 cents for one kWh, you will save about $40 just by upgrading one appliance. You can save a few hundred dollars on a refrigerator alone over its lifespan.
Heating water consumes a large portion of the energy of most households. Lowering your water heater's temperature by 10° can save 3-5% energy consumption. Assume that water heating is 20% of your energy bill; savings are $50 annually. Consider also installing low-flow showerheads and faucets. Those devices use less water without sacrificing pressure, so you'll also save energy when heating the water. A low-flow showerhead alone can save a family of four up to 2,700 gallons a year, less water and energy bills.
Energy can also be saved when one makes minor changes in the kitchen. One can realize that up to 75 percent less energy is used in simple cooking in a microwave or toaster oven than in a full-sized oven. Putting covers on the pots for boiling water saves some cooking time and energy. Save small changes in energy use in the kitchen by cooking your food in the microwave or toaster oven instead of the full-sized oven; this will consume up to 75% less energy. This further saves time and energy used on lids to boil water, which could be used in cooking. Even simple things like choosing a correctly sized burner for your stove pay dividends immediately; using a 6-inch burner under an 8-inch pot wastes more than 40 percent of the burner's heat.
Let us remember the significant presence of natural light. The best thing about daylight is that it cuts down on artificial lighting. Opening curtains and blinds during the day allows sunlight to illuminate your space, naturally warm it, and reflect into the darker corners of your home simply by placing some mirrors. This can reduce your heating needs during winter, and applying the shades and blinds judiciously in summer will keep the interior of your house cooler, thereby reducing your need for air conditioning.
Finally, turning off the appliances when not in use can also significantly save energy. Many electronics draw power even when off, often called "Standby Load." This strange occurrence can add up to as much as 10% of your home's energy consumption. You can recover some of that lost energy by unplugging devices or using power strips to shut down the power. Multiply that by ten devices in a home, each using 5 watts of standby power, and you have 50 watts wasted 24/7. That could add up to approximately $70 annually in avoidable energy costs.
Energy efficiency in your home may only sometimes call for large-scale renovation or significant investments. A few simple measures- upgrading to LED bulbs, installing a programmable thermostat, sealing air leaks, and making small changes in how you use your appliances significantly reduce energy consumption and save money. These changes help ease your budget and contribute to an ecologically viable lifestyle. Remember, every little bit counts; given time, those small changes will add to significant savings.
