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Managing Your Household Usage Will Impact Your Energy Bill Winter tends to be the season that causes electric bills to peak. The summer season also results in higher usage, as a result of the additional air conditioning load, but winter usually creates the highest electrical usage of the year. That's because no matter what your heating source is, electricity is usually there powering the fan or blower. Even unusually mild winters can cause the meter to turn more than usual as the furnace works to cut the chill. Another growing source of high bills is a long list of new electronic gadgets, many of them added to the home after Christmas. Virtually any new gadget on the market today requires electricity, and some of these are not very energy efficient. If your new electronic appliance comes with a brick-shaped box on the power cord, it may be using electricity around the clock. Inside the brick is a transformer that changes the voltage to match the appliance's needs. Even when the appliance is turned off, the transformer is using electricity. The best way to cut this phantom energy use is to connect the appliance to a surge suppressor that can be switched off. When you are through using the device, just flip the switch and end the energy drain. Of course the No. 1 cause of high bills remains air infiltration. Are your windows drafty? Do your doors lack weatherstripping? Maybe the kids aren't good at getting the door shut. If your home has these problems, invest in solutions like weatherstripping kits available at most hardware stores. They will help you save energy dollars year-round. Other low-cost ways to save include hanging and using insulated drapes, especially on north-facing windows. Close all the drapes when the sun sets during wintertime. Reverse the trend as it warms up to keep the sun's rays away. Now that spring is approaching, it's a good time to consider planting for energy conservation. Many books have been written on this subject and University of Missouri Extension offers guidelines for proper plantings. If you have an Internet connection you can find these tips at http://muextension.missouri.edu/explore/agguides/hort/g06910.htm. The concept is simple, however. Plant evergreen trees along north and west sides of your home for windbreaks. Plant shade trees on the south and east sides so that your home is shaded in summer. In the wintertime these trees will lose their leaves and let sunlight through to warm the house. Shrubs also can be planted close to foundations to provide a block from the wind and cold. When your bills are higher than your budget, it's easy to blame the meter. After all, it's the device that records what is used. So it must be the culprit, right? In reality, the meter is rarely, if ever, to blame for high bills. Blaming the meter is like blaming the cash register when your grocery bill adds up. Another temptation when bills are high is to ask a neighbor about their electric bills. If theirs is lower then yours must be wrong, right? Although at first glance it would seem two houses in the same area would share similar bills, nothing could be further from the truth. No two homes will share the same combination of factors, like insulation, wiring, appliances, heating and air conditioning and other variables that determine energy use. Added to this is the fact that one family may be frugal, wearing heavy sweaters in the winter instead of raising the thermostat when it's cold. Family A may have no kids, always turn the lights off when leaving the room, take short showers and unplug their TV when it isn't in use. They do most of their cooking in the microwave and have the smallest refrigerator made. Family B, on the other hand, has three teenagers and a new baby, stays up late watching TV, keeps their computer on 24 hours a day, doesn't close the blinds and forgets to turn off the lights. They do a lot of baking, keep the thermostat at 72 degrees in the winter and 65 in the summer. So don't compare bills with your neighbors and expect them to be the same. |
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