10 Energy Efficient Upgrades for Long Term Savings in Your Home
Thanks to new and safer innovations regularly introduced to the electrical world, every few years it is important to check whether your should add any upgrades to your home electrical system. Most home electrical upgrades are designed with safety and efficiency in mind, meaning homeowners stand to benefit in two major ways. First and foremost, new electrical components offer enhanced safety features such as new tamper proof electrical outlets. In addition to the safety features, there are plenty of home electrical upgrades that can provide homeowners with long term savings. Below you’ll find 10 ways these home electrical upgrades can help you save money in the long term.
10 Tips For Home Energy-efficient Upgrades
1. Switch to LED Bulbs
One of the easiest ways for homeowners to start saving on energy bills immediately is by switching as many incandescent light bulbs as possible to LED bulbs. Not only do LED bulbs draw a fraction of power compared to incandescent and even compact fluorescent bulbs, they also last for a significantly longer period of time. What you may spend in upfront costs for new bulbs, you should quickly see returned to you in energy savings. Not to mention the fact that you won’t have to change light bulbs as frequently with new LED lights.
2. Buy New Energy Efficient Appliances
When the time comes to replace any common household appliances from your microwave to your washing machine, make sure to buy an energy saving model. These new energy-efficient appliances will feature an Energy Star rating, which will indicate how much they can possibly save you over time. While you don’t have to buy the most efficient model, it is a good idea to get something with an Energy Star certification. These energy-efficient models are among the electrical upgrades which can save you the most money over a long period of time.
3. Windows and Doors
Drafts caused by small spaces in your windows and door frames can actually cause a lot of long term issues. Not only will you cause your heating and cooling appliances to work harder and break down before their time, you will also lose plenty of money in energy costs. To avoid this, you should consider replacing any troublesome windows or doors in your home. While in the strictest sense this isn’t an electrical upgrade, it will go a long way towards keeping energy bills lower and electrical appliances working efficiently for longer.
4. Attic Insulation
Another cause for high energy costs can be related to your ceiling and attic insulation. As warm air rises, it will look for ways to escape through your home’s ceiling, attic and roof. If the insulation in your roof hasn’t been checked or maintained for a number of years, you will likely be losing a lot of heat, causing your bills to rise and your appliances to get overworked. A good way to see if this is the case is to look at the amount of snow that accumulates on your roof in winter. If you notice very little snow on your roof, but lots on your neighbour’s roofs, this can be a result of the warm air leaving your home and melting the roof snow on its way out. Reinsulating your attic can prevent this issue from continuing to raise your energy bills.
5. Weather Stripping
Sometimes even newly installed windows and doors can allow small amounts of air to escape or enter your home, causing the same energy loss as we have discussed in the previous two tips. With a bit of well places weather stripping, you can create a tighter seal around the door or window, preventing warm or cold air from escaping outside. This is a simple, yet quite effective method of reducing energy consumption and lowering costs in the long term.
6. Programmable Thermostats
You may not consider your thermostat as an important component for energy savings, but depending on the type of model you own, a thermostat can save you plenty on energy bills over time. Having a new digital thermostat which can be pre-programmed to adjust your home’s temperature during the night or while you’re away can save you plenty over time. With one simple upgrade to your home electrical system, you can start to see energy savings almost immediately.
7. Reduce Phantom Power Consumption
A lot of homeowners may be unaware of how much energy an item like a television or laptop can consume even when they’re turned off. This drain on energy is known as phantom power consumption, and it will add to your energy costs over time. You can take advantage of a power bar to eliminate any phantom power consumption with a single switch. By plugging each appliance into the power bar, you can turn off their connection each night when they aren’t in use by simply turning off the power bar.
8. Furnace Maintenance
Based on some of the previous tips, you may have guessed that a furnace is a major factor when it comes to the cost of your energy bill. Without proper maintenance, your furnace will continue to run less and less efficiently, costing you more on your energy bill, regardless of any other electrical upgrades you make. Have your furnace regularly cleaned and maintained to avoid losing funds on unnecessarily high electrical bills.
9. Solar Energy
Solar power is truly becoming the way of the future when it comes to generating clean, cost effective energy. By investing in a solar panel system for your roof or elsewhere on your property, you can quickly cut down on your energy costs by a significant margin. Eventually you will be able to operate your home’s electrical system on solar energy alone!
10. Get an Energy Audit
To find more ways to save electrical energy at your home, you may consider enlisting some professional expertise to help. With a thorough energy audit from an expert electrician at A Max Electrical, you can easily find other ways to cut down on your energy consumption and spend less on your electrical bills.
For more information about home electrical upgrades, or to schedule an energy audit, be sure to contact Vancouver Electrician at A Max Electrical today!