How These Considerations Affect Your Energy Bills And What You Can Do About It
If you're like most people, you try to keep your energy bills low throughout the year which can be tough during the coldest and hottest months. Temperature control at least partly depends on the age, maintenance records, and weather conditioning of a home. The use of air conditioning and heating can greatly help with temperature control, but only if your home is properly prepared to withstand above and below average temperatures. Solar power can also help you lower your energy costs overall, but it's an expensive option, and it still doesn't fix any vulnerabilities your home may have. Learn how these considerations affect your energy bills, and how you can go about taking charge:
The Windows
If your windows have cracks or chips in them, there's a good chance that unwanted air is getting right through into your home. Even tiny chips that can barely be seen tend to allow air through, which means that your HVAC system has to work harder than it should when it's extra hot or cold outside. For this reason, it's a good idea to have your windows looked at by a professional so that any inconsistencies can be repaired. Having small problems repaired early can save you literally hundreds of dollars in repairs if a crack or chip were to become bigger due to an impact or strong weather patterns.
It's also important to make sure that the exterior edges of your windows are properly sealed so air can't squeeze through between the windows and their frames. To ensure proper sealing, light a candle and slowly move it along the frames of your windows. Use a pencil to mark areas where the candle flame flickers, as this indicates an area where air might be coming through. Then use caulk or spray foam insulation to fill in the areas that have been marked. You'll find that well sealed windows keep noise pollution outside where it belongs and helps to keep dust and insects from entering too.
The Landscaping
Believe it or not, your landscaping can play a pretty big role in how well your home holds up to hot and cold weather throughout the year. If your yard is low on trees and wind breaking foliage, you're missing out on natural temperature control options that help save money and protect your home (as well as your HVAC system) from unnecessary wear and tear.
You can easily protect your home by planting deciduous trees near windows in your home that get full sunlight and by planting thick hedges along the sides of your home or along the boundaries of your property if possible. The hedges will keep strong winds from infiltrating your home and can be cropped in a design that fits in with your landscape's design.
Deciduous trees are full of leaves during the summer months to naturally keep your home cool, and during the winter they lose their leaves, which allows the sun to naturally warm your home during the day. Trees happen to have the ability to increase your property's value by up to 20 percent too. Some awesome deciduous options include:
- Green Ash
- Weeping Willow
- Ohio Buckeye
- Discovery Elm
- Magnolia
- October Glory
- Sycamore
Before planting your chosen trees, determine what their size will be at maturity and plant them far enough away that their branches can't fall on the roof if they break off once they've fully developed. Branches can be quite heavy and cause roof damage even if they don't have any leaves on them.
Analyzing and optimizing these considerations can set you up for years of energy savings, and your HVAC system may be faced with less wear and tear as time goes on. For more information, see a website such as http://www.unitedglassaurora.com.