Everyone knows that heating and cooling your home costs money, but did you know that these bills are the largest energy cost of your home, totaling 48% of your monthly bill? It’s for these reasons and many more that proper maintenance and use of your home appliances and infrastructure can save you a great deal of money.
For example: Electrical wiring is an important part of your house that you may not think about, especially if your house is relatively new. But an inspection of your house’s wiring can save costs in the long run. The statistics surrounding poorly wired houses is alarming. Electrical fires cost the U.S. $1.4 billion annually. For the nearly 55,000 fire every year, there are hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries.
While electrical wiring can result in the worst possible situation, managing the heating in your home becomes a matter of dollars saved. The key with heating is two-fold: saving heat by lowering the temperature at key points and using a smart heating system to regulate the temperature. A smart heating system can keep you from turning the dial over and over, which causes the system to work harder.
Along with heating comes cooling and even though we are approaching winter, understanding the fundamentals of managing your air conditioning system will save you money when spring turns into summer. Air conditioners use about 5% of all the electricity produced in the United States, with two-thirds of all U.S. homes having air conditioners.
Many of these air conditioners are less efficient than they could be. Air conditioners as a whole cost U.S. homeowners more than $11 billion each year. Part of the problem lies in maintenance.
Regular maintenance can keep your air conditioner running well but if you are still having problems, a high efficiency air conditioner could cut your bill significantly. Switching to a high efficiency air conditioner can reduce energy use between 20% and 50%.
The important part to understand is the relationship between your heating and cooling systems and the V part of HVAC–ventilation. Airflow problems can reduce the efficiency of your heating and cooling systems by as much as 15%. There are additional challenges with ducts. Sometimes air can seep out, which is where sealing the ducts would help. Often, insulating the ducts will keep heat in.
But it is always important to have a back-up system during the more difficult seasons of summer and winter. Power going out can eliminate your system, leaving you without air conditioning or heating during times of need. For safety, residential generators keep your system running after power has failed.
The types of electric generators vary according to power and life span. Residential generators can come with a guide for generator installation, though always consider generator services if you run into a problem. Generator preventative maintenance can also make sure residential generators have a long life span.
