What are the best ways to make your home energy efficient?

Question

Other than light bulb replacements with flurorescent
Would like to hear ideas on water heater timers and insulation blankets and what you think. My AC is 10 years old and the water heater is 7. Water heater is electric - AC is central air - heat is natural gas. All appliances are electric. This is a 2BD 868 ft2 condo - bottom floor - 20 years old.

Keep in mind there is no attic because this is a condo on ground floor.

Answer 1

Insulate your attic, and Change your filters every 30 days

Answer 2

Throw out that electric water heater unless you put a timer on it and insulate it. A water heater will try and maintain the temp you set it at all day and night, a timer will let it come on say an hour before your morning shower then it will be off all day. Being on the bottom floor is hard, do you have a basement, if so, insulate the ceiling of the basement then cover with a vapor barrier. If no basement, seal up all the cracks you can find. Ask your utility company if they have a different rate at night than day time, some utilities will put another meter on your house that works from 7 at night to 7 in the morning and all KW's on it will be a cheaper cost that the high usage day rate, then you can run appliances at night and save$$

Answer 3

Replace the A/C unit with a new Energy Star rated unit. Insulate the water heater with an external blanket, and insulate your hotwater pipes as much as you can. Gas furnaces are pretty efficient, but you can have it's efficiency checked by your gas utility.

In general, by the smallest appliances, with the highest Energy Star rating you can. Replacing light bulbs is fine, but the biggest users of power in a house are the fridge (because of the compressor and self-defrost) and appliances with electric heating elements, like driers and toasters.

You can wash most clothes in cold water with a good detergent.

Install a water-saving showerhead.

In other words, if you think small, think insulation, think conservation, you will be thinking energy efficient.

Answer 4

You can weather strip your doors. Get replacement windows. Get an energy star water heater(the settings on my new one make in incredibly efficient), insulate your exterior walls and ceilings. Get a new furnace and AC. My new one is rated at 95% efficient. Get a programmable thermostat. Also you can call the electric co and they can turn your power off during the day when your not there. Set your thermostat 2 degrees higher in the summer and 2 degress lower in the winter. And finally, you can purchase solar panels to use the sun to power some of your house. Depending on where you live, you could sell power back to the electric co. All these are tax deductible so keep your receipts.

Answer 5

Go to a home improvement store and get a water heater insulator,(a big thermal sleeve that goes around the tank), like you stated, turn the dial up on the heater to make it more efficient (ask them about the temp. I can't remember), keep the AC up to 78 and the heat down to 68, either open the blinds/curtains to let light in and don't turn on the lights until needed, don't come and go in and out all the time (that lets in hot air and the cold out), bathe instead of shower and use that water to water outdoor plants, if you can. Call the power and gas companies and ask them to come out and inspect your home for leaks and efficiency. You might try going to your energy providers and seeing if they have any more suggestions on their websites for you to do. Other than that, I don't know of anything else that you can do but, good luck!

Answer 6

Put a timer on your water heater to heat the water one hour before you use it. If you leave town dont turn off your ac. Set it at about 79 or 80. That way it will not work for a long time to bring the temp back to where you want it. Turn the lights off. Dont run major appliances till after nine.

Answer 7

well.....from what I understand, AC units typically last about 10 years so it may be time to replace yours...maybe you should have a service call and see how it is. When you do replace it, make sure you pick one that is an energy star certified unit.... beyond changing the filters every 30 days, you also need to have the coils (in the outside unit) cleaned each year and the ducts cleaned every 5 years or your unit is working to hard.

Answer 8

Check out this guide for tips http://www.allhomerepairsyourself.com/how-to-save-money-on-home-energy.htm

Answer 9

remove the electric meter, disconnect from the grid.