Summer is in full swing. As things start to heat up it is time to start thinking about ways to save on energy costs around the homes and find ways to stay cool. Here are a few helpful tips to conserve energy.

Ceiling Fans

A great way to cut costs on cooling your home is to turn on your ceiling fans. If you don’t have a ceiling fan you can purchase a portable fan that can be moved from room to room. Fans are great to help cool the room down. Because fans help circulate the air in your home you may be able to turn up the temperature of your home a few degrees while still maintaining your comfort.

Close your shades

Closing your blinds, curtains, and interior shades help to keep the warm sun out of your home. Keeping them closed throughout the day helps to not only block the sun and keep your home cool but it also helps protect your home from damaging rays that could harm your furniture and flooring as well. If you have windows that face south, you’ll especially want to make sure during the hottest parts of the day those blinds and curtains are closed. You may also want to consider exterior shades on any south-facing windows as these will also help reduce the exterior heat coming into your home. Miss the sun? Don’t worry, you can open your blinds and curtains again in the evening when the weather has cooled down but the sun is still out. 

Change your air filter

One of the easiest ways to conserve energy in the summer is to make sure you change your air filter regularly. Chances are you might not remember when you changed your air filter last, so you’ll want to do that as soon as possible. When you don’t change your air filter your AC has to work much harder to cool your home down. As a result, your energy bills could be much higher. You might even consider replacing old cooling systems and filters as new systems are much more energy efficient. Yes, you might have some costs up front but in the long run, you’ll save on your heating and cooling bills.

Keep Track of Your Electronics

Devices like computers, curling irons, hair dryers, stereos, and televisions heat up your house as well, so make sure they’re turned off or unplugged when they’re not being used. To help make turning off appliances easier consider putting electronics on power strips so you can easily turn them all off at one time.  Also, be mindful of where your thermostats are and try to keep electronics away from them.

Wash with Cold or Warm Water

Try to limit your hot water usage in the summer. Did you know that 90% of the energy used by your washing machine goes toward heating the water? Doing your laundry on either the cold or warm cycle will help save you some money. Drying your clothes at a lower temperature will cut costs and keep your clothes looking good longer.

Barbeque

Kitchens are full of heat-producing appliances. When it’s hot both inside and out why not fire up the grill for dinner and save energy costs within your home?  If you need a little culinary inspiration, check out one of our recent blogs for some great BBQ recipes. Also, try using the microwave more than the stove as it uses just one-third the energy than an oven and produces very little external heat.

Many of us just expect higher energy costs during the summer. However, by implementing a few of these tips you might just use less energy and save some money on your utilities while you’re at it. From the whole team at Blind Appeal, have a great summer!