If you’re looking to save money by reducing your energy consumption, it is actually quite simple. With a few small adjustments, you can be a positive influence on the environment and help to reduce the amount of energy consumed by your community.
Banff Real Estate has few incentives when adding green and energy-efficient features to their homes. By switching up your habits just a bit, you’ll be well on your way to a low-energy lifestyle!
1. Turn Off Your Computer
Computers are some of the biggest energy users in homes. Turn your monitor off at night and ditch the screensaver. Today’s computers can be turned on and off over 40,000 times. Opting to shut down overusing a screensaver does not affect your computer’s lifespan. (EnergyStar). So power down!
2. Unplug Your Appliances When Not in Use
Your TV, microwave and even some washing machines have a ‘standby’ mode, which means they’re still using energy even when they’re not in use. Buy appliances with a good energy rating. The more stars, the better – but think about size first.
Often it’s easier for a larger model to be more efficient (and therefore have more stars) than a smaller one. However, since it is bigger, its overall energy consumption is usually higher. Check out this appliances guide to help you decide on buying appliances that save on energy.
3. Programmable Thermostat
A programmable or smart thermostat can be set to automatically turn off or reduce heating and cooling during the times when you are asleep or away. When you install a programmable thermostat, you eliminate wasteful energy use from heating and cooling without upgrading your HVAC system or sacrificing any comfort.
On average, a programmable thermostat can save you $180 per year. Programmable thermostats come in different models that can be set to fit your weekly schedule. Additional features of programmable thermostats can include indicators for when to replace air filters or HVAC system problems, which also improve the efficiency of your heating and cooling system.
4. Make Your Refrigerator More Efficient
Setting your refrigerator’s temperature controls to as close to 37 degrees as possible can reduce the energy this power-hungry appliance consumes – use a thermometer if the controls don’t indicate the temperature. It’s also a good idea to check the gaskets on the fridge and freezer doors to ensure that they seal correctly to prevent cool air from escaping.
5. Install Solar-Powered Landscape Lighting
Shining a light on your landscape’s walkways and features is a good way to highlight your great outdoors, but just like other exterior lighting options, if your lights stay on during the day, they’re wasting electricity.
Take your landscape lighting completely off the grid with solar-powered lighting. Switched off during the day, solar lighting soaks up the sun’s energy via photovoltaic cells and automatically switches on when daylight goes dim.
