Customers can take steps to lower the bill by reducing their utility usage and by choosing energy efficiency appliances. Here are some tips!
Year Round Tips To Reduce Utility Usage
Tips To Reduce Utility Usage in Cold Weather
Tips To Reduce Utility Usage in Warm Weather
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Year Round Tips To Reduce Utility Usage
- Leaky taps and toilets can drastically increase your water consumption. Get these fixed as soon as possible. If you rent, have your landlord fix the issue right away.
- Turn off your computer when not in use, or at least turn off the monitor.
- While energy efficient bulbs cans cost more upfront, they often have a longer lifespan and utilize less energy saving you money over time.
- Look at other lighting solutions such as timers, dimmers, motion sensors or task lighting.
- Watch for phantom energy users – electronics not in use, device charges, etc. Unplug these things when not in use.
- Use the cold water setting on your washer whenever possible.
- When you’re on vacation – set your water heater to vacation mode, unplug home entertainment systems and computers, close the curtains or blinds to keep the temperature consistent.
- Don’t let the water run while brushing your teeth.
- Turn off the heat dry setting on your dishwasher and use the energy setting.
- When preparing meals, use smaller appliances like an air fryer, toaster, microwave or bbq instead of the oven.
- Use smart power bars. Unlike regular power bars, smart power bars reduce or eliminate standby power. With a smart bar, you plug the primary device, such as a TV or computer, into the master socket. When the primary device is turned off, the smart power bar cuts power to all associated devices that are plugged into the other sockets, such as gaming consoles and printers. Turn off the primary device and all other devices get turned off automatically.
- If you’re considering a stand-alone freezer, chest (top-loading) freezers are 30% more efficient than upright (front-loading) freezers.
- Conduct an energy audit for your home. An audit can help you determine how much energy your property uses, where it is losing energy, and how to prevent it.
- Replace aging equipment with energy-efficient products. A faulty thermostat, a dirty furnace filter, a motor that needs a tune-up, or a refrigerator with a poor door seal are a few simple things that can significantly increase your usage.
Tips To Reduce Utility Usage in Cold Weather
- Be aware of drafts in your home around your windows and doors. If you can’t weather strip, you can try using rolled towels under drafty doors. Drafts can come from more than doors and windows. Check garage and attic entrances, electrical outlets, and vents.
- Insulation is important, both in your walls and in your attic. If you notice icicles hanging from the roofline of your house in cold weather, you may be losing heat through your attic. Improving your insulation could improve heat retention in your house.
- If your windows are not energy efficient and you are not able to replace them, consider using temporary heat shrink window covers through the colder months. This can help keep the warm air in and the cold air out.
- Check your furnace filters. It is best to replace your filter going into the winter months to prevent restricting airflow. The replacement schedule for your filter will depend on the filter size. If you burn a lot of candles in your home or have pets, your filter should be checked often.
- Many natural gas distribution companies offer a free yearly furnace inspection. Set one of these up for late summer or early fall to ensure your furnace is in good working order before winter weather hits.
- Utilize a programmable thermostat. Set the temperature to increase a little before you wake up in the morning, then decrease once you leave for the day. Repeat this process for before you arrive home and go to bed. Keep the temperature fluctuations under 5 degrees for the best energy efficiency.
- In Alberta, colder weather goes hand in hand with fewer hours of daylight. Be conscious of how many lights are on in your home. Turn off lights in unused rooms and make use of timers, motion sensors and programmable lights.
- Using space heaters may lower your natural gas costs but these will increase your electric bill.
- Close doors to unused rooms.
- A long hot shower can feel great in the winter, but don’t take these too often. It increases both your water usage and your natural gas usage. Shortening showers in multi occupant homes can decrease your water bill significantly.
- Use an automatic car timer to save energy and money. Even on the coldest nights a block heater only needs to be turned on 3 hours before starting your car.
- Window blinds are better insulators than regular fabric curtains.
Tips To Reduce Utility Usage in Warm Weather
- Alberta summers have been getting hotter. This means more people are utilizing and installing air conditioners. If you use a portable air conditioner, put it in the room you use the most to cool it down while you are in it. Turn it off once you have moved to another room.
- Service your air conditioning unit as frequently as you would your furnace.
- Use fans! Make sure your ceiling fan blades are spinning counter clockwise to push air straight down. Set up a system to push cooler air through the house and create an airflow.
- Close your curtains during the day to keep out the summer rays and heat.
- Weather stripping keeps out cold in the winter and heat in the summer.
- Avoid using appliances that heat up your home.
- Hang clothes to dry instead of using your dryer. If doing multiple loads, hang items like shirts and pants, and combine the smaller items from multiple loads into one dryer load. Be sure not to overload the dryer! Dryers work best at ¾ full.
- Don’t overload your fridge or freezer. Keep the condenser coils clean. Prevent the fridge and freezer from overworking and drawing more energy.
- Collect rainwater for watering plants.
- Watch for leaky or left on sprinklers. Install timers for garden watering. If you have children that play in the sprinkler, make sure it is properly turned off when they are done.
If you would like to see an estimate of how much energy certain appliances use, check out the FortisAlberta Electricity Calculator.