In the wintertime, the last thing you should worry about is how you will pay your utility bill. If you are trying to figure out how to balance the high cost of heating your home with your ability to stay warm and comfortable in your home, you have some options. You can take steps to heat your home more cost-effectively so that you can be warm but not broke.
Poor Insulation
When you speak to an HVAC pro about your home’s temperature in the winter, that person might talk about your home’s energy envelope. This is basically a term for the structure of your home that should be containing heat in the winter. It consists of the exterior walls, ceiling, and any openings in them such as windows, doors, or skylights. A well-insulated energy envelope will allow the temperature in your home to stay relatively constant, even in cool weather. However, a home that is poorly insulated will lose most of the heat, making it uncomfortably cold and costly to heat. Adding insulation to your home and addressing leaky windows and doors is a very cost-effective way to maintain the heat that your HVAC system is producing.
Lack Of Maintenance
Everything needs a little TLC to operate correctly. And if your HVAC system has not had the maintenance and service it needs, then it is not going to be operating at peak energy efficiency. A call to your trusted HVAC professional is the first step in getting your furnace or heat pump back to working at its most efficient level to increase your comfort and lower your utility bills.
Think about taking your car into the shop for a tune-up. The mechanic does not do any significant repairs, but when you get your car back, it runs more efficiently. The mechanic has given some major components a good cleaning, reset a few things, and made sure that the engine is working correctly. The same type of tasks are done during an HVAC tune-up to ensure that you have a warm home and that your heating is as cost-effective as possible.
A Programmable Thermostat
You might think that a programmable thermostat is just a little gadget to get you to spend a few bucks. But it really does offer some significant benefits. With a traditional thermostat, you are only able to set one temperature for your home. So when you are sleeping or away from your home, it remains warm and toasty, which is a waste of energy and wear on your furnace.
However, with a programmable thermostat, you can adjust the temperature when you are sleeping or away from home. Even reducing the temperature a few degrees will save you a noticeable amount on your energy bill. Set the thermostat to warm your home just before you get up in the morning, and then let the temperature drop again after leaving for the day. Then set the thermostat to increase the temperature again just before you get home and maintain it until just after bedtime. You will find that you can usually decrease the temperature for more than fifteen hours each day and night. And that will save you a significant amount of money without sacrificing your comfort.
Shop Carefully
If you are looking into a new heating system for your home, be sure to look at only Energy Star certified equipment. These units are certified to be some of the most energy-efficient on the market. And in most cases, there is no noticeable price difference between an Energy Star unit and a less efficient model. The pros at Action Air Plumbing and Septic are here to assist you 24/7 with all of your heating needs this winter. Call 806-583-3558 for emergency service if your heat is not working, you need maintenance help or are shopping for a new HVAC system for your home.
