Your household appliances use a significant amount of energy each year; however, there are some things you can do to lessen your carbon footprint.
The major appliances in your home use a lot of electricity every year. Between your washing machines, refrigerator, air conditioner, and all your other regularly used appliances and electronics, the average American household can spend thousands of dollars annually on their electricity bills.
Thankfully, finding effective yet practical ways to reduce your ecological footprint is easy when implementing the following energy-saving tips.
Continue reading below to learn how you can lower your electricity bills and decrease the amount of energy you use yearly.
9 Energy Saving Tips and Tricks for Your Household Appliances
- Switch to Energy Efficient Appliances — Are you still using appliances from decades ago? Chances are, these appliances are outdated in more ways than one, specifically the amount of energy they use. Today’s appliances are much more energy-efficient.
However, even more than that, you can buy energy-efficient appliances specially designed to consume the minimum amount of energy to complete the same job that you would perform with typical machines. You can even purchase appliances that use renewable energy sources, like solar water heaters, to minimize your energy consumption further. - Clean Your Appliances Regularly — While cleaning the dust and food splatters from the surfaces of your appliances is good to do, that’s not quite what we’re talking about. Keeping the inner parts of your machines clean can make a world of difference in terms of how well they work.
Clean appliances increase efficiency and will lower your energy usage. Moreover, regularly cleaned machines won’t break down as frequently and don’t require as much repair or maintenance. Here are some examples of what we mean:- Refrigerator — Make sure to clean the gaskets around the doors to seal correctly. This keeps your fridge’s motor from working overtime and getting worn out. Keep your refrigerator’s coils clear of dust and grime to avoid blockages.
- Dryer — Remove lint from your lint catcher before or after each load of laundry. Get your vents cleaned annually to avoid clogs.
- Washer — Cleaning the gaskets (for front loaders), tub, and filters of your washer will help get your clothes and linens cleaner.
- HVAC — Replace air filters as often as necessary.
- Dishwasher — You’ll find your dishes are cleaner when you clean your dishwasher’s filters and other components from food and grime buildup.
- Invest in Smart Technology — Smart technology is quickly taking over, and the appliances in your home are not exempt. While it may seem like smart technology requires more energy consumption and is counter-intuitive to invest in it, these smart devices actually help reduce the amount of energy you use and end up helping you save money!
Investing in smart appliances, such as a smart thermostat or sprinkler system, can help you control your settings when you’re away from home or sitting on the couch. If you leave for the day or the week and you forget to adjust your settings, it’s not a big deal. You can manage your smart appliances from anywhere.
- Cook Outside When You Can — Want a fun, energy-saving tip for the hot summer months? Cooking indoors can release a lot of heat, resulting in your property’s cooling system working overtime. Give your cooking appliances the day off and cook outside.
Carefully and responsibly, use your grill or fire pit to make tasty meals for your and your family. For the days you’re stuck cooking inside, make sure to use your exhaust vent or hood fan to suck the released hot air out of the kitchen. - Get on a Regular Maintenance Routine — One of the best tips we can give you is to get your appliances on a regular maintenance routine. Your HVAC system should get a tune-up every year, ideally in the fall, before the cold weather settles in.
As for the other appliances in your home, make sure you keep an eye out for any warning signs of damage or distress so you can get a trusted appliance repair team out to your property as soon as possible to avoid significant appliance problems. - Turn Off Your Appliances — Give your appliances a much-deserved break by turning them off whenever possible. Do your part to make use of natural sunlight and air. Open your blinds, curtains, or shades and allow the natural warmth and light in.
Efficient windows will keep warm air in on cold days and, on hot days, cold air in. So, on pleasant days, shut off your HVAC system and lights, open your doors and windows and let Mother Nature do her thing. - Keep Your Fridge Doors Closed — If you’re like most people, then you’ve probably spent plenty of time in front of your open refrigerator searching for something to eat. If this sounds familiar, you need to stop! The longer your fridge doors stay open, the more your appliance needs to work to keep your food cool.
Moreover, every time your refrigerator doors open, a significant amount of cold air escapes. So, before you open the fridge doors, make your decision on what you’ll snack on, and then quickly close the door. - Switch to Fans — Blasting your air conditioning system consumes a significant amount of energy. The higher your AC settings are, the more your unit has to work, and the more power it will use. While fans won’t change the temperature inside your home, they can help cool you down. Portable fans and ceiling fans alike consume much less energy than your air conditioner.
- Run Your Appliances at Capacity — Life is full of unavoidable chores, such as washing the dishes and doing the laundry. These appliances were made to be most efficient with full loads — so do your best to run full loads, not partial. Partial loads end up wasting energy and water consumption, and you could end up using the machines more often.
At the very least, use the automatic sensing options on your machine. Many washing machines have auto-sensing settings that will only use the necessary amount of water.
Household Appliances Need Maintenance? Contact Dr. D’s Appliance Today!
Let the pros at Dr. D’s Appliance help care for your household appliances. Whether your appliances need maintenance, repair, or need help with installation, our experts can help. We proudly service all major brands in Davis and Salt Lake County, and our trucks are always well-stocked with quality parts for quick repairs. Contact us today to get scheduled.