Reducing energy costs is not only good for your wallet, but good for the environment too. When you reduce energy costs, you are also reducing your energy consumption and lowering your carbon footprint. What’s good for the planet is good for your utility bill, too. Here are 5 strategies to reduce your year-round energy costs.

1. Turn off the HVAC – When weather allows, usually in the spring and fall, turn off your HVAC completely. Spending as much time with the HVAC off as possible helps you save money on heating or cooling your home unnecessarily if the outside temperature is comfortable. You can also use your ceiling fan to help keep you feeling cool when the spring weather starts.

2. Switch to LED – Switching to LED bulbs saves you money in a few ways. First, they take far less energy to operate. Secondly, they don’t give off heat like traditional light bulbs and even some CFL bulbs can. Plus, they last a long, long time. LED bulbs last longer than any other type of bulb on the market so you’ll go longer before needing to replace them. You use light year-round, so this tip helps save energy costs year round too.

3. Add Insulation – Many attics are not insulated or are under-insulated. This means heat loss and cooling loss could be happening in your home. Remedy this problem for year-round energy savings and check for any air leaks in the attic while you’re at it. You’ll save energy from heat loss in the winter and cooling loss in the summer.

4. Caulk Windows – Use removable caulk to caulk along windows and seal out air leaks and gaps. Just make sure it’s removable so you can take it off and open your windows when you need to. This saves you energy year-round by preventing cooling loss in the summer and heat loss in the winter.

5. Get Window Films – In the summer, window films reflect radiant heat, keeping your home cooler. Window films help prevent radiant heat gains by as much as 85%. In the winter, window films act like an extra pane of glass, helping to hold heat in and preventing heat loss through the glass, which keeps your home warmer. In fact, window films can provide as much as 92% more insulating power to your windows.

For window films, Carolina Solar has the highly rated films you need to help you save on your year-round energy costs. The 3M window films used by Carolina Solar are rated by the National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC). This organization is an independent non-profit that provides objective window, door, and skylight energy performance ratings. Their goal is to help consumers compare products and make informed buying decisions. To see a list of the NFRC rated window films by 3M, visit https://search.nfrc.org/search/apd_film/film_search_productline.aspx?mfr=1323&mfr_nm=3M. Questions? Call Carolina Solar!