America’s energy wastage continues to be a national problem, especially because the country misuses a little over two-thirds of annual consumption. As worrying as this sounds, it is worth noting that the mistakes begin at home. Indeed, habits are hard to break, but with self-discipline and deliberate actions, energy wastage can be a thing of the past. Indeed, sustainability is the watchword here to help you save money. Here are some things people usually do in their homes that inadvertently amount to wasting energy.
- Leaving unused lights on
According to energy experts, a 100-watt bulb left on for more than two hours up to ten hours amounts to 12 cents. Therefore, if you have a habit of leaving unused lights on in the home every day, you could be wasting at least $10 to $15 monthly. When calculated on a yearly basis, that is a lot of money you cannot turn a blind eye to. The truth, however, is, until you learn the money equivalent of energy wastage, it may be impossible to get a full grasp of what the issue is really about.
Unfortunately, statistics indicate that two in five Americans have a habit of leaving unused lights on for several hours. It is even worse when the bulbs are not energy-saving ones. During the summer, unused lights left unattended can create more heat in an enclosed space. Again, leaving your lights on during winter can double up your electricity bills. The reason is, during the colder months, demand for home heating is higher than usual, which automatically increases the cost of electricity production.
Aside from this, it also helps to stop leaving your electronics plugged in when not in use. These appliances can consume one-third of electricity when plugged in but not in use. For example, your kettle, coffee-maker, desktop computer, etc., are appliances and gadgets to keep an eye on.
- Using inefficient light bulbs
Thanks to technology, you will find a variety of energy-saving light bulbs that help with conserving electricity. Although EISA standards make it clear to use energy-saving bulbs, some incandescent lights are still available on the market. Apart from the heat that incandescent light bulbs emit, they are costly to maintain and do not offer much variety. More importantly, research has shown that these light bulbs convert nothing more than 1/20th of energy. In other words, about 90% of it is shed as heat. Therefore, if you have these bulbs fixed in your home and you use them daily, you will be contributing to America’s energy wastage.
Perhaps, now is the time to consider changing to light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs, which use less energy and are more convenient for the world today. Additionally, you can opt to use solar power at home. If you’re interested, you can type solar panel installers near me into a search engine like Google, and you will find a professional service.
- Ignoring air filter change
Every HVAC system is designed with air filters that trap particles, dust, and debris in the atmosphere. Over time, these filters get clogged and do not function as they should. However, that is the least of your worries. The true problem is that a clogged air filter puts enormous pressure on the HVAC system, causing it to use up more energy than necessary. In the end, you might have to either hire experts from Epic Electric, Heating & Cooling and get it fixed as soon as possible, or else your monthly electricity bills might bear the brunt of it. Changing the air filters can be done every three months or quarterly. Whether you live in a dusty area or not, there are particles in the air that your eyes may not see, but your filters will trap.
It is vital to breathe cleaner air, especially when indoors. This is because enclosed spaces tend to harbor more contaminated air if care is not taken. Sometimes, when you ignore changing your HVAC’s air filters, the dust and other pollutants can backtrack and get released into indoor spaces. Breathing these in can cause respiratory problems in all persons, regardless of age. All it takes is a phone call to a professional HVAC service (websites similar to https://www.arnoldjonesservices.com/ could be helpful in this regard) to run these routine maintenance checks.
- Always washing clothes in hot water
Most washing machines are designed to wash your belongings with hot water. However, you have the option to change this from hot to lukewarm or cold. If your clothes are not stained with grease or oil, cold water can efficiently do the job. Doing this allows you to save energy the machine would have utilized to heat water.