Here’s wishing you a Happy Green New Year with a few tips to help you save money
One energy supplier is promoting a greener New Year for its customers in New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Texas, Connecticut and Canada. Direct Energy has some simple but effective ways of cutting down on wasted energy and energy costs.
Direct Energy had a “Holiday Energy Usage Survey, conducted by Polaris Marketing Research” in the United States and Canada. As a result of that survey, Direct Energy came up with the following suggestions for starting your New Year off right. As Jim Steffes, Vice President and General Manager, Direct Energy Residential, says:
We don’t have an energy problem in North America, we have an energy-waste problem. We all can stand to use a little less energy without really impacting our comfort and lifestyle. At the end of the day, the less you use, the less you have to pay.
Here are Direct Energy’s tips:
Shop the post-holiday sales for more efficient lighting – Of the large number of residents putting up lighting displays, most use 5-14 strings for their display, and almost 20 percent are using over 20 strings. Yet only 10 percent have switched to energy-efficient lighting. Consider using some of those gift cards towards purchasing LED (low-emitting diode) holiday lights when they go on sale in January; they run cooler, last longer, and use 10 percent of the energy an incandescent bulb does. Have money left on that gift card? Stock up on compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) for year-round use inside your home. They also last way longer, and use much, much less electricity for the same lighting as their incandescent counterparts.
Use a programmable thermostat – Resolve to buy one and use it, or to actually set yours and not override it. Programmable thermostats allow consumers to cool or heat their homes only when it’s needed, and avoid running the cooling or heating system for an empty house.
Invest in a home energy audit – Make sure you’re targeting energy efficiency improvements to the areas of the home that need it most. That’s different for all homes. A home energy audit performed by a trained HERS auditor outlines the areas where consumers will see the biggest bang for their buck – rating savings versus payback period for recommended measures. Visit www.directenergy.com/audityourenergy for information on costs and how to book a home energy audit.
Commit to preventative maintenance – This can be as easy as changing the filter on the cooling system once a month, as recommended, to avoid the build-up of particles that make the system work harder than it needs to and avoids unnecessary wear-and-tear on the system’s components. To maximize the efficiency potential, resolve to have the system checked annually by a qualified technician who can help diagnose problems before they cause system down-time at the least convenient moment – like the next family gathering.
Understand your electricity pricing plan – Make sure you know who your retail electricity provider is, what type of plan you’re on (whether it can change from month-to-month or depending on market changes, or whether it’s fixed), what the length of your agreement term is, and when it expires.
Invest in timers and motion-sensor lighting, and resolve to use them – Leaving the front porch light on when away or through the night gives a certain sense of security; it also keeps the meter turning and racks up dollars throughout the year. Ditto for the living room lamp left on while the house is empty due to travel or vacation. A little here and there won’t break the bank, but added up throughout the year, it’s a significant waste of energy and money. Timers and motion-sensors can bring that same feeling of security while also avoiding unnecessary energy usage – but the survey showed less than a quarter of Texans ever use them. A fairly inexpensive investment requiring little change on the consumer’s end, but can have a positive impact on those annual energy costs, while making the house look occupied even when it’s not.
Commit to small lifestyle changes – Turn off lamps, lights, and televisions when you leave the room. Unplug chargers that aren’t being used. Safely power down computers and home electronics like gaming consoles when they aren’t in use. These are small steps, but can mean shaving a month’s equivalent of energy usage off annual costs.
Remember these tips will only work, if you follow them.
Have a Happy New Year full of energy savings and lower power bills!
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