It is impossible to ignore the fact that most of us are spending increasing amounts of time at home. This is helping us to stay safe but it has certainly thrown a lot of things out of whack. From canceled trips and events to just general stir-craziness, it can be tough to stay home most of the day. What’s more, it can make things a lot tougher on our energy bills. When you are home all day, your energy use is often going to go up quite a bit whether it is from increased time spent cooking, needing to keep your HVAC system on more regularly, or even just needing to have the lights in the home on for a couple of extra hours a day.
We know that things have been more stressful than usual lately so we want to do our part to help. That is why we have collected some tips and tricks to help you keep your home energy efficient during this time and reduce your use so you have one less thing to worry about. Let’s get started.
6 Ways To Curb Your Energy Use While You’re Home
You have the ability to keep your energy use at a minimum even when you are home more often than usual. Here are a few tips to help you do just that.
- Turn the lights off after you leave a room. Yes, even when you are going to be coming back to that same room in a couple of minutes, you should turn off the lights. It may not seem like a lot but those minutes really do add up.
- Temper your temperature settings. Things are still pretty cool here in Chicago but we all know how quickly it can heat up. Try to keep your temperature demands at a reasonable level when things start to get hotter. The Department of Energy recommends keeping the temperature setting at 78°F during summertime to keep your home temperate without driving up your energy use.
- Unplug electronic devices that aren’t in use. If you aren’t actively charging your phone, unplug the charger. Is the room fan off? Unplug that too. If you want to take the extra step you can even unplug room lights that aren’t in use.
- Use sunlight and shade to your advantage. If you are trying to heat up your home on a cool day, leave the curtains or shades open in the rooms that get direct sunlight. This will help heat things up while easing the job your heater has to do. In contrast, keep those rooms shaded and cool during summer to make things easier on your AC.
- Make your showers shorter. When you shorten your showers, you are going to be reducing the amount of energy needed to produce warm water. As an added bonus, this also reduces your water use, which is just as good!
- Ensure your HVAC system is operating efficiently. Maintenance for your HVAC system in Chicago goes a long way in making sure they are using energy efficiently or addressing the issues that might hinder them from doing so. We are happy to offer our services to assist with keeping your home as energy-efficient and comfortable as possible.
Contact ServiceMax today to learn more about our services and our safety measures.