Smoke Detectors

This is the perfect opportunity to check all smoke detectors in your home. Change the batteries at this time each year to ensure each unit is fully functional in the event of a fire.

You should also take advantage of this opportunity to test your carbon monoxide alarm, since this time of year means your heating system will likely be in use.

Outlets

Make sure each outlet in your home is operational. If there are problems, it’s time to investigate whether or not a breaker switch has been flipped. If additional or advanced troubleshooting is required, it’s best to call a licensed electrician for answers. The same story holds true for your light switches and fixtures.

Don’t forget to check faceplates for visible signs of damage. It’s fairly simple to replace faceplates and this prevents things falling into the wiring while also helping spruce up the look of rooms where damaged faceplates can be found.

Lighting Timers

During the summer months, you set timers to later hours. However, as the days grow shorter, sunset comes earlier. Perhaps now is the time to reset timers in preparation for the winter months ahead.

Exterior Lighting

Check all exterior motion sensor lights to insure they are operating properly and turning on when they sense motion of cars or persons walking on the property.

Ceiling Fans

Now is the time to reverse the direction of your ceiling fans to rotate clockwise. This will distribute the rising, warm air and help save you on heating costs.

Time for a Bright Idea

While you’re working with interior and exterior lighting, now is a great time to consider making the move to a greener lifestyle.  Start with the bulbs you use.

You may want to consider supplementing your exterior lighting with solar powered options while switching other exterior lights to LED lights. There are many new options available for homeowners to use inside the home for lighting, and LED provides many benefits worth considering.

The up-front costs of LED bulbs for the interior of your home are a little higher than CFLs or standard light bulbs. However, the long life of these bulbs combined with the energy savings they deliver more than makes up for the difference in cost in a short amount of time.

There are battery-operated lighting strips available that are perfect for task lighting under cabinets or inside cabinet doors and drawers. Look for new ways to avoid turning on the lights for quick trips to the kitchen and bathroom and your energy savings will increase.

If you need help with something more than changing a light bulb or faceplate, give us a call. Our team of expert electricians is ready to help you at 914-621-4482.

Keep the thermostat at 78 degrees
Every degree below 78 causes your heating and cooling system to work harder, which can increase your bill by about 5%, per degree.

You can also save around 10% on your home heating and air conditioning by using a programmable thermostat, which are more accurate than manual devices. For instance, you can program the air conditioner to shut off automatically during the day when you aren’t home.

When you are away from the house, make sure your thermostat is set to “Auto” instead of “On”. When the thermostat is set to “On”, the motor is left constantly running. Not only is this inefficient, it can actually generate heat.

Use ceiling fans to cool rooms
The energy required to run a ceiling fan vs. an air conditioner is significantly lower. During the hot summer months, make sure the fan blades are pointed down. The angle of the fan blades pushes the air down and creates a comfortable cool breeze, which can forestall use of the air conditioner.

Shades and curtains
Have you ever noticed how much cooler it is in the shade than out under direct sunlight? The difference between the shade and the sun can be anywhere from a 5 to 20 degree difference.

For the windows and doors that face the direct heat of the sun, specifically on the south and west sides of a home, keeping shades and curtains closed can also keep it up to 20 degrees cooler. Using white curtains that reflect the light of the sun away from the house, rather than darker colors, which absorb light and heat.

Other Energy Saving Tricks

• If your home gets very humid in the summertime, a dehumidifier can help the air feel a lot cooler.
• Avoid placing lamps or electronics near the thermostat. Extra heat generated by these appliances will tell the thermostat that the air is hotter than it is, and the air conditioner will run when it isn’t needed.
• Turn off your electronics, including computers, when they are not being used. They generate a lot of heat.

Do you have tips for beating the summer heat?  Tell us here.

Although today’s electronic devices and appliances are much more energy-efficient, most of our homes have more devices than ever before, which is the first reason why our electric bills are rising. Homes used to be limited to lamps, electric ovens, dishwashers, refrigerators and washing machines; now we have those appliances along with multiple computers, tablets, iPods and cell phones, just to name a few.

Kim Komando wrote a great article on this topic for USA Today back in 2012, and her advice is still relevant – if not more – today. We’ve pulled together five tips, including her suggestions, to help you put your vampire energy suckers to rest.

5 Tips for Saving Money on Your Electric Bill:

1. Turn off & unplug unnecessary devices. This may sound time consuming but you can also turn it into a family game every evening. Unplug table lamps in every room that you don’t use regularly. Unplug phone chargers, toaster ovens, televisions, computers and anything else that you don’t need during the nighttime hours. Decide if you can unplug the coffee maker or if it’s worth having it automatically programmed to make your cup of coffee every morning. The more you can unplug the more money you can save. And you may find that some of these items remain unplugged for multiple days, until you need to use them again.
2. Use inexpensive power switches or socket adapters. These switches or adapters plug into your wall sockets but they have an ‘on/off’ button, so your plugs can remain in the power switch over night but the power button can be shut off. If there’s no power leading to the device, there’s no extra cost of keeping the device plugged in. Some of these adapters have timed switches, so you simply set the timer and it shuts itself down. This is a great alternative for the coffee maker and television; simply set the time the power should go off and what time it should go back on.
3. Purchase a smart power strip or surge protector. These are handy for desktop computers and also televisions with game stations because the ‘smart’ power strip can identify when a component has gone idle and will then shut down the outlet. Many of these smart strips also come with remote controls so you don’t have to squeeze behind tables or into corners to physically turn on the power.
4. Turn off your hot water heater when on vacation or shut down the power with a timer switch. We often forget about our hot water heaters since they’re usually buried down in our basements but keeping the setting at 120 degrees or less will save you money and reduce the risk of scalding. Likewise, unless you have a house sitter while you’re away, turning off the water heater while you’re away will save you even more money.
5. Always buy Energy Star appliances and keep reminding your kids to turn off their electronics!

What are your energy-saving tips? Tell us here!