As Westporters receive winter heating bills, they shiver.
Sustainable Westport feels your pain. To help, they encourage residents to transition to “reliable, resilient, renewable energy.”
They alsooffer many small changes and choices, which add up to big impacts. For example:
Schedule a Home Energy Assessment. A technician will visit your home and provide a detailed energy report, immediately install basic weatherization and energy-saving measures, and recommend other energy-saving improvements.
They will also provide information on rebates and financing for the recommended insulation projects, heat pumps and more. Participants pay $75 for this service. They receive, on average, $600 in services, and save up to $180 annually in return.
Homeowners are eligible for this service every 6 years. If you’ve had one long ago, it may be time for a repeat visit.
For information on a home energy assessment — including how to schedule one — click here. For a first-person experience, click here.
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A home energy assessment includes bulb-checking.
Check your insulation. Effective insulation can reduce heating and cooling bills by 15% or more. As part of the recommendations from a home energy assessment, you could receive up to 75% off approved insulation upgrades.
Open (and close) curtains. Up to 30% of a home’s heating energy can be lost through windows. During the winter, open your curtains during the day to let the sunlight in. Close them at night to keep the cold air out.
Adjust your ceiling fan. Set your ceiling fan to spin clockwise. This helps push down warm air gathered near the ceiling, to heat the room evenly.
Lower your thermostat. Each degree is the equivalent of 1% energy savings. Turning the thermostat down 5 degrees can equate to a $100 annual fuel bill decrease. A smart thermostat can be a great tool to help do this automatically.
Set your water heater to 120℉. Hot water heaters use up to 17% of a home’s energy. Turning the temperature down can save 4% to 22% of the energy needed to heat your water.
The hotter your shower, the higher your bills.
Run full loads of laundry in cold water. 90% of the energy used by a washer is to heat the water. Washing in cold water can significantly lower your machine’s energy use.
Ensure all bulbs are LEDs. Switching 10 60-watt incandescent bulbs for the equivalent LEDs could save $300 or more per year.
Regular appliance maintenance. Replacing the filters on your HVAC equipment and performing other appliance maintenance routinely not only extends the life of your appliances, but ensures they run more efficiently, thus lowering energy costs.
Consider heat pumps. They are a clean, versatile heating and cooling solution that reduces greenhouse emissions. With rebates of up to $15,000, now is a great time to upgrade.
To find out more, register for Sustainable Westport’s “Heat Pumps 101” webinar (March 5, 7 to 8 p.m.). The panel includes heat pump experts, and Westporters who have installed heat pumps in their homes. Click here to register.
(“06880” regularly covers the Westport environmental scene. We help you save money, too. We hope that, with a bit of those savings, you’ll support our hyper-local work. Just click here. Thank you!)