One of the most common questions we receive from homeowners is how they can lower their utility costs. This is a complex question with endless answers. However, there’s one answer we find extremely beneficial and it applies to almost all home owners – Energy Efficiency. While other ways to save money involve sacrificing comfort in your home or expensive upgrades, energy efficiency is all about maximizing comfort while minimizing energy use and cost.
There are numerous reasons why your home’s HVAC system may not be as efficient as it could be. For one, the issue may be with the system itself. Units that are old, ductwork that isn’t properly sealed, or units that don’t have enough room to operate may be using more energy than necessary to cool or heat your home to the desired temperature.
Even if your HVAC system is running as smoothly and efficiently as possible, there are other factors in your home that may be hurting your home’s energy efficiency. If your home is unable to retain the warm or cool air generated from your HVAC system, this puts an additional strain on your HVAC unit and takes more money out of your wallet. Some of the most common places in the home we notice air escaping is around windows, doors, and through the attic. If these areas aren’t properly insulated and sealed, more energy ends up being used to keep your home comfortable.
This is why determining the weak spots in your home is the first step towards improving energy efficiency. A home energy audit by our BPI certified energy management consultant provides home owners with an in depth analysis of energy use, loss, and areas for improvement. This energy evaluation not only identifies where energy is escaping from your home, it also evaluates your current HVAC unit, ductwork, and insulation to provide the best energy efficiency information and suggestions.
Once you’ve identified how your home could be more efficient, our BPI certified energy management consultant can help address these problems that will improve your home’s efficiency and make your home more comfortable. Depending on your unique situation, these improvements could include repairs to your HVAC system, duct sealing, complete home insulation service, and crawl space encapsulation. Our BPI certified energy management consultant will explain how each service improves your home’s energy efficiency and lowers your utility costs.
There are many other ways you can improve the energy efficiency of your home. Here are some we haven’t mentioned yet:
- Programmable Thermostats: Programmable Thermostats allow you to heat and cool your home only when necessary. It helps to lower costs by turning off your heat/air when people aren’t home.
- Change Your Filter: Changing your filter has multiple benefits. Not only does it improve the quality of air circulating through your system and home, it takes strain off your unit. Dirty filters limit the amount of air that can pass through, and require your unit to work harder to reach a desired temperature.
- Schedule Regular Maintenance: Having a certified HVAC technician regularly inspect and service your HVAC system is the best way to make sure your system is running smoothly and as efficiently as possible.
- Clear the Area: Make sure the area around your HVAC unit is clear of any debris or clutter. If air is blocked from your unit, your unit will need to work harder to reach the desired temperature, not only raising costs, but shortening the life of your unit.
Questions? Contact Dodrill Comfort & Energy Solutions today. We’d be happy to help!