IDT Energy World

One easy way to try to save money around the house is through your energy bill. Doing a yearly audit of your energy usage and issues can greatly help you to reduce costs and to fix problems. IDT Energy offers these simple tasks that should be done as part of any self audit.

Each year, make sure to inspect your heating and cooling equipment. Replace filters as needed, and have a professional come in and clean your equipment once a year as well. Check all ductwork for dirt streaks which can indicate air leaks. These should be sealed with a duct mastic.

If your heating and cooling unit is more than 15 years old, you should consider purchasing a new unit that will be much more energy-efficient. A new unit will reduce your energy use. These quick checks and small changes can make a big difference in your energy bill overall.

One creative way to save on your energy bill each month is by upgrading your wall insulation.  This is a little known idea, but one that creates a huge list of benefits for energy savings and more.  IDT Energy will explore and explain the many benefits with you here.

Certainly, wall insulation helps your home to stay warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.  This means that you’ll be able to use less heat and air while maintaining a comfortable temperature in the home; and this leads to energy bill savings at the end of the year.

In addition to these benefits, there are many other benefits to upgrading your wall insulation.  Well-insulated walls can minimize drafts and make your home quieter by blocking out noises.  Properly installed insulation helps to seal the home from air leakage while also improving the fire safety of the home.  Should you experience a power outage, well insulated walls actually help your home to remain comfortable and habitable for longer.  If you have water pipes running inside the walls of the house, the extra insulation can reduce the risk of freeze problems.

Certainly, paying for extra wall insulation costs money.  In general, however, the benefits are well worth the cost, and you should be able to re-cooperate your cost with your

Certainly, as IDT Energy and any other energy service company will explain, there are many clever ways that you can save on your electric bill.  If you are careful, you can reduce electricity use in the home and reduce your energy bills.  While the savings may not be drastic – every little bit counts and helps with the overall budget.

Here are a number of quick tips for reducing your energy usage in the home.  Certainly, within each of these categories, there are more specific details and recommendations that can help you even more.

* Appliances and Electronics – Purchase products with an energy-efficient rating and make sure to turn products off when not in use.

* Lighting – Try to add more natural lighting options to the home including windows, skylights and more.  Purchase energy-efficient light fixtures with the Energy Star label and use energy-efficient light bulbs.

* Heating and Cooling – Add ceiling fans in as many rooms as possible. These help to circulate air and to keep rooms cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.  Make sure you have proper insulation and air seals in the home.  Select an energy-efficient heating system that doesn’t use electricity.

* Water Heating – Purchase an energy-efficient electric water heater and make sure to operate it as efficiently as possible.  Or, you might want to select an energy-efficient water heater that doesn’t require electricity to operate.

The way you cook can be energy efficient or wasteful. Two people cooking the same meal can use vastly different amounts of energy doing it. By simply covering a pot when boiling water can save half the energy and time than trying to boil water in an uncovered pot.

The types of pots and pans used in the kitchen can also make a big difference. If you have an electric stove, make sure the pots you use are flat bottomed and make full contact with the eyes.

On gas stoves, keep the grease catchers under the burners clean. The shiny metal that they are made from actually reflects the heat back up into the pot and reduces cooking time.
Use the smallest pot that you can for the meal that you are making. Heating up a large pot to cook a small amount of food is a waste of energy. Also, whenever possible use a toaster oven or microwave to warm up leftovers of make small amounts of food. Microwaves are among the most energy efficient appliances around, using two thirds less power than electric ovens.

It is possible to save energy when you cook. You might consider purchasing a new type of stove which uses “induction” to heat your food. Induction creates heat more quickly by accelerating metal molecules magnetically in such materials as steel, cast iron and some stainless steel pots. When the pot is removed from the eye of the stove it cools much faster than ordinary stoves.

A stove that heats using induction transfers about 90% of its heat to the pot due to the fact that induction conforms to specific metals. An electric burner transfers about 70% of its heat, and a gas stove only about 35% to 40%. Be warned though. Induction stoves can cost double to triple or more that what a gas or electric stove costs.