Saving money on electricity and home cooling involves both small and little steps. Upgrading to a new, energy-efficient cooling system offers obvious and substantial rewards, but there’s lots more you can do…for your own sake, and that of the common good.
Here are some ideas you can implement today:

• Clean or replace your filters once a month or as needed.

• Use fans during the summer to create a wind chill effect that will make your home more comfortable. If you use air conditioning, a ceiling fan will allow you to raise the thermostat setting about 4°F with no reduction in comfort.

• Turn off kitchen, bath, and other ventilating fans within 20 minutes after you are done cooking or bathing to retain heated air.

• Install a programmable thermostat so you can adjust the temperature according to your schedule.

• Insulate your ducts in un-cooled areas such as attics and crawl spaces and keep them in good repair to prevent wasteful leaking.

• Plant trees or shrubs to shade air conditioning units but not to block the airflow. A unit operating in the shade uses as much as 10% less electricity than one operating in direct sunlight.

• Keep your window coverings closed during the day to prevent solar gain.

• Weatherize your home - caulk and weather strip any doors and windows that leak air.

• Remember that new windows must be installed correctly to avoid air leaks around the frame.

• Apply sun-control or other reflective films on south-facing windows to reduce solar gain.

• Install white window shades, drapes, or blinds to reflect heat away from the house.

• Install exterior or interior storm windows; storm windows can reduce heat loss by 25% to 50%.

• To test for air leaks on your own, hold a lit candle next to windows, doors, and electrical outlets on windy days, or next to light fixtures to test for leaks.

• Use the air-dry setting to dry the dishes in your dishwasher. If an air-dry setting is unavailable, then turn off the dishwasher when it finishes rinsing (before the dry cycle). If you open the door of your dishwasher after the rinse cycle; the dishes will dry much more quickly.

• Remove lint from your dryer’s lint trap after every load.

• Hang clothes up to dry whenever possible.

• Turn your hot water heater down to the lowest practical setting to allow everyone hot showers. Stagger the bath times so that lower temperature setting on the hot water heater will still provide everyone warm showers.

• Turn off lights when not using them.

• Switch to compact fluorescent bulbs.

• If you only use your computer for a few hours in the morning and then don’t look at it until nighttime, turn it off. Do not leave your computer running all day

• Unplug appliances that aren’t in use.

There’s plenty more we can all do for a greener lifestyle…and each step we take makes a big, big difference.