Homeowners have a number of costs that add up and fluctuate based on your family’s habits. If your home uses gas as its primary energy source, your monthly electricity bill can become pretty pricey. Consider the cold winters and hot summers where the bills skyrocket as you try to heat and effectively cool your home. We’re sure those bills were a bit higher than you would have liked, right?
Finding ways to cut down on inefficient energy use and looking for ways to make your home more energy-efficient can help minimize these costs and ease the strain on your wallet. Not only will this be helpful towards your bottom line, but it will also help the environment.
Turn Off Heat When You’re Not Home
When you’re away for the day, running errands, at school, or at work, turn off the heat. Of course, it’s always nice to come back to a nice, toasty home after being out in the cold, but this is not at all energy-efficient, and the actual cost is definitely not worth it. It doesn’t typically take very long to heat a room up, so instead of leaving the heat on when you’re out, consider cuddling up under a blanket until the room gets comfortable.
Do Laundry Less Frequently
It might be tempting to do laundry more frequently when you have an in-home washer/dryer so you don’t have a ton of folding and packing to do at a time. However, this less energy-efficient and will also add more to your water bill. The hot water used during laundry day adds up to about 15% of your annual gas bill. Rather than doing laundry regularly each week, put it off until you have enough to do a hefty, full load. Also, consider switching from using warm or hot cycles to cold.
Take Shorter Showers
Each minute spent in the shower uses 2 gallons of heated water. Long showers can be comforting and relaxing after a long, stressful day, but you’ll definitely be paying for it in your gas and water bills. Consider taking shorter showers. Lather, scrub, rinse, and hop out.
Insulate Your Home
A major use of gas comes in the winter months when you need to heat your home. If you notice that it takes a long time to heat up a small room in your house, this may be a sign that your house is not properly insulated and the warm air is escaping and/or cold air is getting in. Seal cracks above and below doors and seal the cracks around your windows to keep warm air in and cold air out. Proper insulation will require less heating and also help retain the heat for longer. You won’t have to run your heating system for as long to get to your desired temperature and maintain it.
Install a Digital Thermostat
Going digital will help you control the temperate of your home from anywhere. This will make it easy to turn off the heat when you’re away and you can also pre-schedule your thermostat according to your regular routine. You can also leave the place a bit cooler during the times you’ll be asleep, as you’ll be less likely to need your home extra warm if you’re not even awake.
There are so many small tips and tricks that can save you money on your gas bill. While some of them may not seem like much, a little goes a far way over the course of a year. You’ll be surprised at how these savings start to add up when you are proactive and educated about your energy usage throughout your home.
