Why are my energy bills so high??

That’s a loaded question if I’ve ever heard one.

There are a lot of different reasons why your energy bills may be high. First of all, you have to consider the time of year, and temperatures. In the dead of winter or summer, obviously your heating and air conditioning system is going to be one of the biggest factors to analyze. This can compose up to atleast 49% of your utility bill! There are a lot of variables that come into play when you talk about your HVAC system.

How often are your windows and doors opened? Obviously, the more your doors and/or windows are open, the more air escapes outside and hot air gets inside. We’re not just talking about temperature difference here either. The more humidity gets inside your home, the harder the unit has to work to keep it cool. Humidity soaks into your walls, your furniture…anything and everything. Your air conditioner has to pull all of that out to keep your home cool.

What temperature do you keep your thermostat set to? It is generally a good idea to keep your thermostat somewhere between 72 and 78 degrees…anything below or above will probably have an effect on your utility bill.  These are the temperature set-points I recommend to our customers everyday.  *Remember. An air conditioning system is only designed to cool your home down to 20-25 degrees below outside temperatures.

Do you have any duct leakage? Do you like air conditioning your attic or crawl space under the house? If so, all is good!  If not – you might want to have this checked. It should be checked with your annual maintenance anyway. Next time your HVAC company comes out – ask them do check for air leaks and to confirm all of your ducts are intact and properly connected, and if needed, insulated.  I have been into multiple homes where the customer had complained of lack of air flow to certain rooms, where concluding my inspection I found the ductwork to be disconnected!

Do you run ceiling fans to distribute the air in your home? This is a great way to distribute air evenly across multiple rooms, and not have as many ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ spots by helping to circulate and redirect conditioned air.

Do you have regular preventative maintenance performed on your HVAC system? This is an absolute necessity. Preventative maintenance will help keep your unit running at peak efficiency so your air conditioner is not costing you more money than necessary to run it.  This is FACT!  Call Thermo Green today to schedule either a furnace and air conditioning tune up.

How is your insulation? This plays a big part, and ties in with duct leakage…except your air could be leaking to the outside in many other ways.  Compressed attic insulation has very little “R- value”.  A simple topping off with either some blown in insulation or batts can greatly reduce your energy costs.  Sealing around pipes with some type of foam insulation, and replacing the weather stripping on your doors, help to prevent hot or cold air drafts.

When all else fails, you might need to look at the age of your system. This is something that needs a lot of consideration.  By updating your current system to a higher efficiency one, you can cut your utility costs by up to 60%!