Energy Saving Tips
Making a few simple changes can boost your home's value, as well as make it more energy-efficient:
1. Lower the thermostat on your water heater.
2. Check for air leaking around doors.
3. Close the air vents in rooms, not in use.
4. Keep heat producers far from your thermostat in summer.
5. Clean your furnace and air conditioner filters.
6. Operate large appliances during low-use periods in summer.
7. Request an energy audit. Most utility companies will make recommendations or offer low-cost financing for improvements.
8. Replace deficient insulation.
9. Replace old or inefficient appliances. If your budget limits you to replacing one appliance, buy a new refrigerator, which represents about half of your electric bill.
10. Buy new light bulbs. Replace incandescent bulbs with fluorescent, which pay for themselves in energy conservation.
11. Look into EEM Mortgages. An Energy Efficient Mortgage is federally recognized and provides benefits to a borrower purchasing a home that is energy efficient or can be made energy-efficient through the installation of energy-saving improvements. (For more information about EEMs, contact the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.)