Save Money and Make Your Maine Home More Comfortable with These Efficiency Tips (Part 1)

The technology behind home heating and cooling equipment has taken great strides over the last two decades: today’s machines run quieter, last longer, and are much more efficient than old HVAC systems.

But home energy efficiency is about much more than having great heating and cooling equipment (although it certainly helps). In this first of a two-part post, we’ll explore four great ways to make your home more efficient and more comfortable in every season (we’ll do four more next week, so be sure to check it out!)

1. Add insulation, especially in your attic – More than half the homes in the US are under-insulated, according to the Alliance to Save Energy. Insulation keeps heat in during winter and out during summer, which reduces the burden placed on your HVAC systems. That saves you now (on energy bills) and later (on costly repairs and premature breakdowns). Proper insulation will improve your comfort and could cut your home energy bills by up to 20 percent.
2. Seal your ducts – If you have a forced air system (that is, if you have an AC or furnace and vents), about one fifth of the air that passes through your ducts is lost to leaks. That means twenty percent of the air you paid to heat or cool will never make it into your living space.
3. Use LEDs or CFLs rather than Incandescent light bulbs – Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and light emitting diodes (LEDs) draw as much as 80 percent less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs for the same lighting power. CFLs and LEDs last longer, too: in fact, some LEDs can last up to two decades without replacement.
4. Replace an older furnace with a high-efficiency system – If your furnace is more than 20 years old, it probably wastes more than a third of the fuel it uses – even if it has been properly maintained. Replacing your furnace with a new high efficiency model can save you thousands of dollars over the course of its lifetime – more than enough to pay for itself in just a few years of ownership.

Looking for more ways to save and keep your family more comfortable all year long? Check out Part II next week – or contact us today!