Save $3,700 Challenge - June: Cooling and Heating Bills

THE SAVE $3,700 CHALLENGE JUNE SAVE $25O THIS YEAR BY REDUCING YOUR COOLING & HEATING BILLS spend $2,200 on energy annually, and about half that may go Households around All-purpose tips: • Insulate windows. toward heating and cooling! If you live in an older home, you This can be as simple as caulking or weather stripping. may be spending even more. In any case, you're likely to see substantial heating and cooling • Insulate your attic. This provides a better buffer between the inside of your house and the air outside. savings by following these tips to reduce the energy you use • Turn down the temperature on your water heater. Though it's not intended to heat your home, your hot water heater can't help but warm the inside air, which increases cooling costs in the summer. to heat and cool your home. Your energy savings can be as high as 20 - 50 percent,? and • Install a high-efficiency unit. This will help reap cost savings over time if you need to replace heating or cooling equipment anyway. at a conservative 20 percent savings for the rest of the year, that works out to just over $250 of savings. With the weather about to warm up, there's no better time to get started! SUMMER TIPS WINTER TIPS Replace your air conditioner filters regularly. Dirty filters restrict airflow, making your cooling system work harder to cool your home. Turn down the heat and dress warmly around the house. If you're used to being comfortable in a T-shirt during the winter months, then there's a lot of room for savings by turning the heat down. Raise the temperature on your thermostat when you're away. If your thermostat is programmable, set it to raise the temperature while you're gone. Turn down the heat while you're away. If you have a programmable thermostat, have it automatically reduce the temperature while you're gone. If you'll be away on vacation, tum down the thermostat to 50 degrees. Reduce oven use. Try using the microwave instead to avoid heating up your house. Close curtains or blinds when you're not benefiting from sunlight streaming through. This will help reduce heat lost through the windows. However, you should open shades on south-facing windows during daylight hours to allow sunlight to warm your home. When you're not home, close curtains on windows that let in lots of sun. You can even consider planting trees outside your windows to provide shade for your house in the future. Close your storm windows to reduce heat loss. Change your furnace filter regularly to improve efficiency. If you want to do even more to reduce your heating and cooling bills, there are $180 additional steps you can take to insulate your home. IS THE AMOUNTA PROGRAMMABLE THERMOSTAT Consider reading: CAN SAVE YOU EVERY YEAR A Do-It-Yourself Guide to Sealing and Insulating IN ENERGY COSTS." with ENERGY STAR® CashNetUSA. SAVINGS: $250 OR $35.71 PER MONTH EMoney's on the wayo References 1) A Guide to Energy-Efficient Heating and Cooling. (2009, Sept. 4). Energy Star. Retrieved 7 Dec. 2012, from http://www.energystar.gov/ia/partners/publications/pubdocs/HeatingCoolingGuide%20FINAL_9-4-09.pdf 2) Tips: Heating and Cooling. (2012, May 30). U.S. Department of Energy. Retrieved 7 Dec. 2012, from http://energy.gov/energysaver/articles/tips-heating-and-cooling DE %24