Home
Energy Bills: Are You Being Fuelish?
Talking
About Money
with Jim Larranaga
According
to the Department of Energy, the average family spends
close to $1,300 a year on home utility bills and anywhere
from 10% to 50% of that expense is unnecessary. Lowering
your home energy consumption is good for you and good
for the planet.
With
cold weather approaching, it's time to make your home
more energy-efficient and comfortable. These eight tips
could save you thousands of dollars in years to come.
1.
Hot water heater
If
you have a gas water heater, make sure the flame is blue;
if it's yellow, your unit needs servicing. Lower the water
heater setting to 120 degrees F (provided your dishwasher
has a booster heater; detergents clean best at 140 degrees
F). Insulate your water-heater tank if it feels warm to
the touch. An insulating blanket will pay for itself in
one year or less! Insulate hot water pipes where they're
reachable. Drain a quart of water from the water-heater
tank four times a year to remove sediment.
2.
Furnace
Lower
the thermostat on your furnace. Experts estimate you can
save 2 percent of your energy bill for every degree that
you lower your thermostat. Try maintaining a temperature
of 65 degrees during the day, but lower it slightly at
bedtime. Better yet, install a clock thermostat to set
the temperature back automatically when you're at work
and at night. Replace or clean air filters monthly. Check
for open fireplace dampers. Insulate heating ducts that
leak heated air into the attic and crawl spaces, and move
furniture off floor vents.
3.
Appliances
Clean
the coils on your kitchen refrigerator and unplug that
extra refrigerator in the garage -- during winter, the
ambient temperature in northern climes is low enough to
keep foods cold. In your washing machine, rinse with cold
water and use hot water only to clean heavily soiled clothes.
4.
Windows and doors
Heat
loss through and around windows accounts for 10% to 25%
of your heating bill. Caulk, seal and weather-strip all
seams, cracks and openings to the outside.
5.
Lighting
Replace
incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs.
Compact fluorescent bulbs last up to 10 times longer,
use 1/4 the energy and produce 90% less heat, while producing
more light.
6.
Bathroom
Buy
low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators. A family of
four, each showering for five minutes a day, uses 700
gallons of water a week. You can cut that amount in half
with low-flow showerheads and faucets.
7.
Attic
If
you have less than 7 inches of fiberglass or rock wool
or 6 inches of cellulose insulation in your attic, you
could probably benefit by adding more.
8.
Landscaping
Deciduous
trees planted on the south and west sides of a home will
allow the sun to shine in the windows in the winter and
help keep the home cool in the summer. The Department
of Energy estimates that three properly placed trees can
lower the average home's energy bill by $100 to $250 a
year.
Win
$50 In A Consumer Poll
I'd
like to hear what you have to say about this column as
well as any questions you might have about money. Visit
my Web site at www.talkingaboutmoney.com and answer questions
like the one below. Then post any question you would like
answered in future columns. If you're the first to post
a question chosen because of its broad interest, you'll
receive $50. Winners are notified by e-mail.
Q:
When buying a new appliance, how important to you is the
energy rating?
A)
Very important
B)
Important
C)
Indifferent
D)
Unimportant
E)
Very unimportant
Jim
Larranaga is Executive Vice President of Priority Publications,
a Minneapolis-based publisher of financial newsletters.
Courtesy
of ARA Content, www.aracontent.com, e-mail: info@aracontent.com
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