The arrival of the fall season often heralds the start of soaring electric bills. But it doesn’t have to be this way. With some forethought and a few tricks, you can stay warm this fall season and still avoid high electric bills. Here’s how you can save on electric bills this fall:
Control your house temperature
This is about being aware of your temperature settings and adjusting them to fit the circumstances. For example, if you are out of the house, or asleep, you can turn down your house temperature to low digits, as you do not need that much heat in your house. The trick here is the constant awareness of your heating needs and adjusting your house temperature accordingly depending on the circumstances. This avoids a situation where your house temperature is set at a certain point that is not adjusted even when the house is empty or the occupants are asleep. This leads to high electric bills.
Seal your windows to prevent cold wind from outside
Keeping windows sealed (as they are likely to bring cold drafts) will go a long way to helping your house retain heat and have an overall effect of keeping your energy consumption low. Clear plastic film can be used to cover the inside of your window frames during cold months to help retain heat. If you don’t have clear plastic film, heavy-duty plastic sheets will do the job just as effectively. The trick is to ensure that the film or plastic sheet is firmly adhered to the window frame.
Consider solar energy
Solar energy can be tapped to supplement some or most of your energy needs and thus reduce your dependence on the expensive electricity from the grid. While this might involve some up-front costs for installation and maintenance, the cost savings from tapping into solar energy can be incredible in the long run.
There are various options when it comes to using solar energy and the options you take will have an effect on how much money you save on your energy bill. You can have a stand-alone off-grid configuration where energy from installed solar panels is used only during daytime to power certain elements such as heating water or water pumps.
You can also have a configuration whereby your solar energy system is tied to the grid and compliments periods of grid outages; or even configurations where unused solar energy is sent back into the main grid. Regardless of the system you choose, solar energy has the potential to give you considerable savings on your electric bill.
Control your water heating costs
Water heating accounts for a considerable portion of your energy bill. Being aware of your water heating settings and ensuring that you have the lowest possible setting that still keeps water at a comfortable temperature will considerably reduce your energy bill. Alternatively, as we have seen, you can consider hooking your water heating system to an alternative energy source such as solar energy to reduce dependence on the expensive grid electricity.
All these are simple strategies that you can employ this fall to keep your electric bills down. As you can see, a lot of them are simply about being more conscious of your energy use and adjusting your heating needs accordingly.
