As you’re compiling New Year’s resolutions this holiday season, take a little time to put together some HVAC resolutions. These are just a few simple steps you can take to save energy (and money) in your Dayton area home:
HVAC Resolutions That Work
- Use ceiling fans to help circulate warm air in the winter. With the blade rotation set to clockwise, a ceiling fan will push the air upward, forcing warm air that collects near the top of the room out toward the wall and down into the room where occupants can feel it. This helps delay the point at which the thermostat signals the furnace to kick on.
- Remember to check the furnace or A/C filter every month, and when it looks clogged with dust, replace it with a fresh one. This will help protect HVAC components while allowing for clear airflow in your forced-air heating and cooling system.
- Turn down the thermostat on a storage-tank water heater to around 120 degrees. For the great majority of household uses, you don’t need the water heated to 130 or 140 degrees. Wrap hot water pipes leading from the water heater with insulating tape.
- Open window drapes and curtains to allow the sun to shine into your home on sunny winter afternoons. Close the curtains at night to add a layer of insulation. In the summer, close curtains and other window coverings that face the sun in the afternoon.
- If you don’t already have one, install a programmable thermostat. Once you’ve set an energy-saving program to match your daily schedule, you can simply forget about it.
- Schedule a maintenance tuneup for your heating system in the fall and your cooling system in the spring. HVAC equipment will operate more efficiently and last longer without breakdowns. Consider a Comfort Assurance maintenance plan to save money over the long run.
There’s plenty of other productive HVAC resolutions you can make. To learn more, please contact us at Ace Hardware Home Services, providing superior service to the Dayton-Springfield area.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Dayton, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
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