Think Outside the Box: New Ways to Save Money
There are tons of ways to save money around your home. Many of these ways concern how well your doors and windows conserve heat and coolness. The following are just a few of the ways you can save a bundle quickly.
Utilize Storm Doors to Keep Energy Inside
A lot of people focus on making sure their windows are energy-efficient, but far too often they forsake their doors. Modern doors tend to be well insulated and well-sealed around the edges and knobs, but there is still heat transfer going on. A storm door adds a thick additional layer of air that buffers the inside against the outside, further reducing the amount of heat transfer going on. In the summer time, these doors can also be used as vents while the main store is open and letting in fresh air.
Unplug Unused Appliances
Unused appliances still use up to 20% of the power they normally draw when they’re on. It’s called passive power draw, and it may be costing you hundreds of dollars a year in energy. If you don’t use something most of the time, such as your stove or dryer, turn it off at the breaker. Unplug your toaster when it isn’t in use. You can even unplug your computer’s power strip when you aren’t using anything it powers. You may even have lamps and appliances you rarely use that you keep plugged in because of habit, and they may be taking money out of your pocket every month.
Window Coverings Keep Things Cool
Blinds and other kinds of window treatments can keep a lot of heat from entering your home during the summer months. This takes some of the stress off of your cooling system, and can often pay for itself within a year or two of installation. Even if you have treated, triple-pane windows, you can still experience both a nice aesthetic upgrade and a substantial cost savings to your power bill when you put up a decent set of blinds, curtains and other inside treatments.
Temperature Reducing Awnings
The outside is another great place to save money by deflecting the sun’s heat. With today’s more modern, tougher awnings, they don’t need to be repaired or replaced nearly as often as the old-fashioned ones did. With modern awnings, particularly on south-facing windows, you can produce dramatic savings in the winter. If you install retractable ones, you can even save on heating in the winter by letting the sun shine in.
Go On Bike-Cations
A lot of people think that even camping requires them to have a car or an SUV. It does not. If you take a week or two off, you can travel around your area and stay in motels or even in a tent. You can save a ton of money this way and see the local countryside at a leisurely pace. No one even has to know there’s exercise involved. You may even take day trips this way, feeling like you’re on vacation without the hassles of traveling.
There are so many ways to save money by altering your home to be more energy-efficient. Many don’t require much more than some creativity and a will to reduce your yearly energy expenses.
Category: Housing, Save Energy
