Home Efficiency and Comfort
As spring transitions to summer, our specific needs regarding home comfort will also undergo a transition. In winter, we crank up the heat and bundle up under blankets and comforters. In summer, the blankets come off the bed. The space heaters go back in the closet and are replaced by box fans. If we have central air and heat, then we lose focus on the former and turn our attention to the latter. The cost of our summer cooling bill depends on a lot of factors, some of which are in our control and some of which are not. It’s possible to do your part for energy efficiency and still end up with a high bill, but that doesn’t mean that high bills are inevitable. Keep reading to see how you help your home efficiency and comfort level in your home.
Get a tune-up
We’ve all been unpleasantly surprised by an abnormally large bill. Sometimes there’s been a mistake on the part of the electric company, but other times, we’re simply using more energy than we realize. If there’s a major heatwave or cold snap, then you’re going to have to use at least a little more electricity to stay safe and comfortable. But if nothing like that happened, make sure you’re turning off the lights when you leave a room and be wary of keeping electronics on standby mode as well. If you still used way more energy than usual, it’s a good idea to call in a team of HVAC experts. HVAC stands for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. If there’s something that’s slowing down your air conditioner and causing it to expand more energy than it normally would, then they should be able to identify the problem and then offer solutions. Think of HVAC maintenance as like car maintenance: If you don’t get your oil changed occasionally, then it has serious repercussions for your vehicle’s performance. At some point, your vehicle will just shut down completely. Get your system checked out before it stops working completely on the hottest day of the year.
Look at where you live
Not surprisingly, people who live in hot Southern climates tend to pay more for electricity in the summer, while those who live in cold northern climates tend to pay more in the winter. There are charts that tell you the average price of electricity per kilowatt hour by state, but they don’t tell you just how cold or hot it gets in each state. Not surprisingly, regions with an overall higher cost of living also tend to pay more to the electric company each month. It may also help find out whether or not your state has deregulated its gas and electricity markets. Electric companies have said that deregulation gives customers more choices and better pricing, but the results in states like Texas have been a mixed bag.
The age of your home can also play a role in your electrical usage. Most of us don’t want to move just to pay less in cooling costs, though. There may be alternatives, though, including hiring an electrician to retrofit your home in a way that makes it more energy efficient. Old wiring can sometimes be faulty, and faulty wiring can cause a host of problems. An outlet that chars or throws a circuit breaker is a sign of an issue that needs to be addressed right away. Replacing an outlet can make your house safer as well as more efficient, and a safer house is also a more comfortable house.
