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reducing energy costs

How to Reduce HVAC Costs This Winter

| Clarke & Rush |

Are you concerned how the winter season will affect your utility costs? While the chilly winters we have here in Sacramento can be hard on the unprepared homeowner, we have some tried-and-true suggestions for saving a little extra dough while keeping your home comfortable and cozy this winter. Our Clarke & Rush professionals have put together this guide to help you reduce your HVAC costs without resorting to freezing all winter. Read on, and let us help you keep to your budget this season.

Want to discover even more ways to reduce your heating expenses this winter season? Contact Clarke & Rush today about scheduling furnace or heating maintenance!

No-Cost Solutions

It seems that every little thing has gotten expensive, but that is not always the case. Here are some absolutely FREE things you can do to increase your energy savings. These little changes may save you a bundle on heating costs.

Adjust your thermostat accordingly. We recently spoke a bit on ideal thermostat settings, and this ties in pretty well here. By finding that “just right” temperature that you can feel comfortable enough with (maybe with the help of throw blanket) you can minimize the amount of energy your furnace has to expend in order to keep you comfortable.

Harness the power of the sun. During the day, blinds and window covers should be open in the winter. The radiated light and warmth can heat a room by multiple degrees, helping you to keep cozy without spending a dime.

Change your air filters. A chore that takes a couple of minutes can boost the efficiency of your HVAC equipment, improve the air quality in your home, and can help prevent breakdowns. A win-win-win if we’ve ever heard one.

Minimize square footage. Try to keep closets and cabinets closed when possible. The aren’t a ton of space, but every single square foot your furnace has to heat represents energy loss.

Buy house shoes. Extremities are the things most homeowners have trouble keeping toasty, and so you boost the furnace by two, three degrees just to warm your frigid tootsies. But some nice house slippers and wool socks can get the job done without using any energy at all.

Low-Cost Solutions

There are some even better ways to boost your efficiency this season, too! These do, however, cost you a minimal or moderate bit of cash, so we thought they should go in their own bracket.

Consider these:

  • Upgrade your insulation. When’s the last time you had your insulation inspected? Five, 10 years? If so, you can almost certainly benefit by adding more! You won’t just see energy and comfort benefits in the winter, either. When the summer rolls back around your AC system will thank (and reward) you, too. Learn more about how insulation can save on heating a cooling costs here.
  • Schedule HVAC maintenance. A furnace tune-up is pretty inexpensive and can help you save tons on your energy bills this winter. Not to mention professional service reduces the risks of a mid-season breakdown appreciably.
  • Consider a programmable thermostat. Featuring learning technology, smart adjustments, and programmable routines, a programmable thermostat is the ideal way to optimize your HVAC system’s performance.

For even more ways to green your home, check out our blog post: “16 Ways To Make Your Home Greener”

Professional Furnace Service in Sacramento, California

Looking for a team of certified and licensed experts to help you get the most out of your furnace or heat pump this winter? At Clarke & Rush we proudly offer all of the heating maintenance, tune-up, and repair services you need! Just call our experts on the phone at any time, or contact us online to get in touch with a heating expert in Sacramento near you!

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