{"id":24398,"date":"2013-06-23T00:11:30","date_gmt":"2013-06-23T04:11:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/?p=24398"},"modified":"2013-06-22T14:21:12","modified_gmt":"2013-06-22T18:21:12","slug":"tips-to-help-reduce-your-summer-energy-bills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/2013\/06\/tips-to-help-reduce-your-summer-energy-bills\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips To Help Reduce <br>Your Summer Energy Bills"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft  wp-image-24403\" title=\"energy-saver\" src=\"http:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/energy-saver-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"120\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/energy-saver-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/energy-saver.jpg 423w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 180px) 100vw, 180px\" \/>When cooling your home,<\/strong>\u00a0set the thermostat at 78 degrees Fahrenheit. Each degree below adds 8 to 12 percent to the cooling costs.<\/li>\n<li><strong>When heating your home,<\/strong>\u00a0set the thermostat\u00a0at 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Since heating costs three times more than cooling, consider using a space heater or electric blanket.<\/li>\n<li><strong>While away from home for more than two hours,<\/strong>\u00a0set the thermostat at 83 degrees Fahrenheit.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Install a programmable thermostat<\/strong>\u00a0that will automatically raise and lower the temperature at certain times of the day.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Be sure your thermostat is set on the \u201cauto\u201d setting.<\/strong>\u00a0This is more economical for temperature and humidity control.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Do not close A\/C vents<\/strong>\u00a0or interior doors when A\/C is running.<!--more--><\/li>\n<li><strong>Service your air conditioning<\/strong>\u00a0system annually.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Repair duct leaks<\/strong>\u00a0using metal foil tape reinforced with mastic adhesive.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Check the attic<\/strong>\u00a0for areas where insulation is missing or may have been moved during repairs or cable installation.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Change or clean filters<\/strong>\u00a0monthly.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Keep windows and exterior doors closed<\/strong>\u00a0when running your air conditioner or heater. Also, use caulk and weather strip around windows and doors.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Do not locate refrigerators\/freezers in a garage<\/strong>\u00a0or other non-air conditioned space.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Refrigerators should be maintained<\/strong>\u00a0at 36 to 38 degrees Fahrenheit, while freezers should be maintained from 0 to 4 degrees Fahrenheit.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Full freezers use less power.<\/strong>\u00a0Use plastic soda bottles filled with water, or bags of ice, if necessary. Keep refrigerators full when leaving your home vacant for a long period of time.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Test your refrigerator door<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>gasket<\/strong>\u00a0with a crisp dollar bill. A good gasket will hold the bill in place.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Replacing standard light bulbs<\/strong>\u00a0with compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and use 75 percent less energy.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Turn off fans<\/strong>\u00a0when the room is not occupied. Each continuously running fan costs approximately $7 per month on your electric bill.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Run pool pumps for a maximum<\/strong>\u00a0of 8 hours a day in the summer, and 6 hours per day in the winter, unless you are heating the pool.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Install reflective window tint\/film<\/strong>\u00a0that will reflect 65 percent or better on windows facing east, west or south. LCEC also recommends installing awnings, storm shutters and planting shade trees.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Reduce water heating costs<\/strong>\u00a0by installing a low-flow shower head, setting the water heater temperature to 120 degrees Fahrenheit, or installing a Heat Recovery Unit (HRU), which will heat water at no cost when the A\/C is running.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Use a minimum of R-30 insulation<\/strong>\u00a0in the ceiling\/attic floor to save on heating and air conditioning costs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Tips from LCEC<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When cooling your home,\u00a0set the thermostat at 78 degrees Fahrenheit. Each degree below adds 8 to 12 percent to the cooling costs. When heating your home,\u00a0set the thermostat\u00a0at 65 degrees&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24398"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24398"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24398\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24398"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}