When it comes to managing your household, every penny counts, especially with energy bills. Continue reading “Cutting Your Home Energy Bills Down to Size: Strategic Steps You Can Take Right Now”
Tag: energy bills
Year-Round Energy-Saving Best Practices for Efficiency
If you’ve resolved to adopt some energy-saving best practices, it may help to think of saving energy like making choices on a grocery shopping trip. Continue reading “Year-Round Energy-Saving Best Practices for Efficiency”
Modulating Furnaces: Green, Eco-Friendly, Efficient and Comfortable
Unlike standard furnaces that start and stop, leaving drastic temperature changes in your home, a modulating furnace operates constantly to monitor the temperature in your home. Continue reading “Modulating Furnaces: Green, Eco-Friendly, Efficient and Comfortable”
Think a Programmable Thermostat Is Too Smart? Read On
When you leave your Long Island home for a day at work, do you need to heat it like you do when you’re home? Absolutely not, yet turning down the thermostat is just one more thing to remember on your way out the door. To make this job simpler, you can install a programmable thermostat to take care of this for you, so you can save money and energy while still coming back to a comfortable home. Continue reading “Think a Programmable Thermostat Is Too Smart? Read On”
Correct Furnace Sizing Is Paramount for Top Efficiency
Furnace sizing is an important factor to focus on before you make a sizable investment. Continue reading “Correct Furnace Sizing Is Paramount for Top Efficiency”
Before Adding Home Insulation, Be Sure You Select the Right Type
Since keeping a home well-insulated is so important in terms of reducing energy bills and increasing comfort levels, there’s a wide variety of home insulation types that are available to homeowners. Different types of insulation will work best for different spaces, so it’s important to do some research and choose the right type for your situation. Continue reading “Before Adding Home Insulation, Be Sure You Select the Right Type”
Home Energy Savings as Simple as Understanding Your Gas Bill
Becoming well informed about your gas bill can actually help you increase your monthly home energy savings.
Gas company costs to the customer
Many homeowners may not realize that the gas provider purchases fuel from an outside source. This cost is typically 50 percent of the average customer bill. Interestingly enough, most companies pass this cost directly on to the consumer, without a price increase. Gas companies make a profit from their delivery fees and service charges.
The cost of gas can fluctuate monthly and seasonally, depending on the current fuel rate. This can be similar to the change in gas prices at your local gas pump. Your gas bill may show an average of these price fluctuations throughout the year, keeping the monthly cost basically the same.
Gas usage terminology
It’s worth your while and you can improve your home energy savings if you understand how gas consumption is expressed on your bill. The quantity of energy used in the Long Island area is measured in therms. Without sounding too technical, this term is a short abbreviation for thermal unit. It reflects the consumption of BTUs, or British thermal units, where one therm is equivalent to 100,000 BTUs. Other costs appear on your bill reflecting various fees and charges. These costs are set by the company and the customer has no control over them.
Lowering gas costs for better home energy savings
One area you do have control over is the amount of gas your home consumes. The first step toward lowering costs is to have an energy audit performed. You can also pay attention to the BTU rating assigned to your appliances. The higher the BTU number, the higher the amount of energy it consumes per hour, which means higher gas consumption. Consider purchasing certified energy-efficient appliances. Energy and cost savings can be expected and are well worth the investment.
For more information about boosting home energy savings, contact the professionals at T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating. We’ve been proudly serving homeowners in Long Island since 1934.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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Determine Whether a Condensing Furnace Works for You
If you’re in the market for a new heating system for your Long Island home, consider a condensing furnace.
While furnaces older than 10 years have an annual fuel utilization efficiency, or AFUE, of only 65 percent at best, the new condensing furnaces on the market have an AFUE of more than 98 percent, meaning that at least 98 percent of the fuel used to operate the system is converted to heat for your home. The remaining 2 percent or less is vented outdoors.
So what makes a condensing furnace so fuel-efficient? It starts with a duel heat exchanger. In a conventional furnace, which has one fuel-driven heat exchanger, the exhaust gases left after heating the air are sent up the chimney. The condensing furnace features a secondary heat exchanger which recovers this exhaust and uses it to heat more air for your home, reducing waste and increasing the unit’s energy efficiency exponentially. The end result is considerable savings on your energy bills.
Condensing furnaces have other features that add to their efficiency, including:
- Variable-speed blower motor – Conventional furnaces have two speeds: on and off. Condensing furnace blowers utilize varying speeds that change with your real-time heating needs. Lower speeds during warmer periods mean less electricity consumed and more comfortable temperatures in your home.
- Electrically commutated motor (ECM) – Most standard furnaces utilize split-capacitor motors, which are tough but require a lot of electricity to operate. ECMs are not only quieter, but also use up to 75 percent less power.
- Modulating gas valve – Unlike conventional furnaces in which the flow of fuel to the unit is constant, condensing furnaces modulate the consumption of fuel from 40 percent to 100 percent, depending on your heating needs. On warmer days, the furnace will automatically reduce the fuel used to heat your home.
For more expert advice about whether a condensing furnace is right for your home heating needs, please feel free to contact us at T. F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating. We’ve served Long Island for over 75 years with a high level of customer satisfaction.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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How to Maximize Your Programmable Thermostat to Save Energy
As temperatures fluctuate between seasons, weeks and even days, having a programmable thermostat can help keep you and your family comfortable.
Installing a programmable thermostat also provides energy-saving benefits, resulting in lower monthly utility bills. Follow some simple guidelines to maximize your programmable thermostat and save energy.
- Keep your thermostat set at its energy-saving setting during long periods of time, such as during the day while family members are at work or school and overnight. To see the best results in savings, keep settings in place for 8 hours at a time when possible.
- If you need a boost in warm or cool air, temporarily override the set program temperature. That said, using this feature regularly can reduce your efficiency. Instead, alter your settings to a more comfortable programmed setting.
- When you’ll be away from home for days at a time, use the vacation setting so you aren’t heating or cooling an empty house. Maximize your savings by reducing the amount of conditioned air your HVAC system produces since your home will be empty.
- Set a program that works for your family. The 7-day models are ideal for families with a unique schedule each day of the week while 5+2-day models are great for families with a set Monday through Friday routine and a separate weekend schedule.
- To optimize performance, remember to change the batteries in your thermostat each year. Most systems will alert you if you need to change the batteries more often.
By following these tips and being thoughtful about your energy usage, you will notice the savings in your utility bills.
Thinking of installing a programmable thermostat in your home to optimize your energy usage? Contact the experts at T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating. We’ve served the Long Island area since 1934.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
Image via Shutterstock.com
Done Insulating? Not If The Attic Hatch Is Leaking
If your attic hatch is leaking, it may be a big source of energy loss in your home. Further, it will negate other insulation improvements you make to the attic. Fortunately, it’s fairly easy to stop leaks through the attic hatch. Continue reading “Done Insulating? Not If The Attic Hatch Is Leaking”