Our (sometimes excruciatingly) hot summer temperatures can take a serious toll on your electric bill. The longer, hotter days lead to overworked air conditioning systems and thus greater costs. If you’re tired of dreading the number on your bill each month, there are some steps you can take to conserve energy despite the intense heat.
Insulation is Key
Hot air creeps in as cool air escapes through the roof, in cracks between your windows, and underneath your doors. We recommend checking the weather-strip seals on all your home’s openings to make sure that they are efficiently keeping your home well air conditioned. Insulating strip seals are inexpensive to buy but can save you a good amount of money on your bill each month. Cool air can even escape around your switches and outlets–have a professional inspect these devices to make sure the insulation around them is intact and functional. If your home is old, consider replacing the insulation in the attic with some labelled R-38 or more.
Raise the Cool Setting, Lower Your Electric Bill
The recommended cool setting for Florida homes during the summer is about 78 degrees. By setting your thermostat even just a couple degrees lower than this, you could be increasing your cooling costs by 10-15%. Conversely, you could save this money by setting your thermostat to 79 or 80 degrees instead. Programmable thermostats are a great help to maximize your savings while also keeping you cool (especially at night).
Use the Grill, Not the Stove
Anyone who has prepared a hot meal understands that the temperature of the kitchen rises quite a lot over the course of the 15-45 minutes that you’re cooking. This rise in temperature means your A/C works overtime to cool your house. If you can withstand the heat in your backyard, opt to grill outside instead of using your kitchen appliances on some days to prevent heating your kitchen.
Fans Can Lower Your Electric Bill
Powering a ceiling or floor fan uses far less energy than cooling with your A/C. These devices are a great way to cool down a space without taking a toll on your power bill–a single fan can make the room feel up to 8 degrees cooler than it is. Set your ceiling fans to spin counter-clockwise–this motion will pull hot air up and push cool air down toward the floor.
Maximize the Rest of Your Home’s Efficiency
It’s unavoidable that your A/C unit will be working harder during the summer. While a rise in your bill is likely, you can help offset the extra power required to cool your house in a few different ways. Change all your lightbulbs to LEDs, which consume a fraction of the watts required by incandescent bulbs and have a significantly longer lifespan. Use less hot water–water heaters use the most electricity after your HVAC system. Wash clothes on the “tap cold” setting (which requires no heating or cooling), and take cooler, shorter showers if you’re able. Turn off all lights, fans, and other electrical devices when you leave the room.
While a larger electric bill is just a fact of life during the summer, you can feel better knowing you’re cooling your house as efficiently as possible.
Make sure your home and your electrcity is running as efficiently as possible this summer – call Promise Electric today for an electrical inspection.
