Make Your Home More Energy Efficient With An Electrician | Conway, SC

7/4/2022

If you’re tired of paying high energy bills and want to make your home more energy-efficient, an electrician can help. Electricians are skilled in all kinds of electrical work, including energy efficiency, and they can put their expertise to work in your home to save you money while reducing your carbon footprint at the same time. Start with this list of tips from an experienced electrician on making your home more energy-efficient through electrical upgrades. Then, call a professional to do the actual work on your home.

What Is Energy Efficiency?

Energy efficiency is a broad term that describes several ways to reduce energy usage. The most common way people think about energy efficiency is through investing in energy-efficient appliances and light bulbs. Still, there is also plenty of low-hanging fruit that can be picked without spending much money at all. An electrician has seen it all when it comes to helping homeowners be more efficient and can help you identify where your opportunities for improvement lie.

How to Start Making Your Home More Energy Efficient

With electric rates climbing higher and higher, it is more important than ever to start making your home as energy-efficient as possible. Hiring a licensed professional is one of the best ways to make your home more energy-efficient. The electrical experts at Valley Electrical can design a personalized plan for you that will meet all of your needs while staying within budget constraints.

Install a Programmable Thermostat

Installing a programmable thermostat is a simple upgrade that greatly impacts energy savings. A programmable thermostat can keep your home at a pre-set temperature, resulting in significant energy savings over time. For example, if you set your thermostat to rise by 5 degrees per hour while you’re sleeping (e.g., going from 65 degrees to 70), that could result in up to 20% savings on your electric bill.

Replace Your Older Appliances with Energy Star-certified Ones.

If you have older appliances, you can see huge savings by replacing them with newer versions that are ENERGY STAR-certified. Replacing one older appliance (like a refrigerator) in your home can save energy bills. And if you upgrade all of your old appliances to new ENERGY STAR-certified ones, it’s estimated that you could save on energy costs. Ensure that any used appliances you buy have been properly maintained and serviced recently. An electrician can help find the best way to use electricity efficiently while providing updates to your electrical system, wiring, and outlets.

Switch to Led Lighting

Lighting is another huge energy waste, so efficiency experts recommend switching to LED lights whenever possible. Depending on your wattage and usage, a single LED light can reduce your energy consumption by as much as 90%. They’re more expensive up front, but LEDs last longer and have a better return on investment than traditional lighting. You’ll also notice significant savings in energy costs over time.

Upgrade Your Appliances

If you’re in Conway, SC, and your home is more than a few years old, it’s time to consider upgrading. This will also help lower your energy bills. In general, newer appliances use less electricity because they are designed to be more efficient. Appliances like water heaters and air conditioners account for a large portion of a home’s total electricity use, so replacing them will greatly impact your bills.

It can be expensive to replace appliances, so if you don’t have cash up front, consider asking family or friends for donations or financing through a website like Kabbage that offers short-term financing to small businesses. However, it is important to remember that getting new appliances is not worth going into debt.

Heat Your Water with Solar Power

Air conditioning is far more common here than in other places in America. But even if you don’t live in Conway, SC, solar water heaters are still a great way to make your home more energy-efficient. It may seem counterintuitive, but they help reduce summer air conditioning use by lowering your HVAC system’s demand for electricity.

They can also save energy on heating by boosting hot water storage capacity during mild weather. They provide dual benefits of reducing energy consumption across all year seasons and can cut your energy bills significantly once installed; savings range from 50-75% of annual costs.

Put Your Electronics on a Smart Power Strip

Smart power strips are a great way to reduce energy waste in your home. You’re using electricity every time you plug something into your wall socket. If you turn on three devices at once, each device uses about as much power as a 55-watt light bulb. So what does that mean for you? If every person were to plug three devices into a power strip all day long, we’d use enough electricity to light one million 100-watt light bulbs. A smart power strip will automatically shut off the electronics plugged into it when it senses they’re not being used.

Why Make Your Home More Energy-Efficient?

Conserving energy is essential for our planet. Over 10% of all greenhouse gas emissions each year come from buildings. And heating and cooling homes account for more than half of that energy usage. Making your home more energy efficient will benefit you personally and help reduce environmental pollution on a large scale. Plus, you’ll spend less money on utilities if you have to heat or cool your home less often. How can an electrician help?

An electrician could work inside and outside your home to make it more energy-efficient. The inside would include working on lights, air conditioning units, furnaces, boilers, windows, and insulation to save money and protect the environment. The outer part includes adding solar panels or installing geothermal systems to harness renewable power sources. Before making any final decisions, you must talk with a professional about which option would be best for your budget and your needs.

We Are the Experts That Can Help You in Making Your Home Energy Efficient

After completing a home energy audit, you’ll be able to tell exactly where your home is losing energy. Sometimes, it may just come down to small changes or tweaks. However, other times it might require a complete remodel. If that’s not something you’re ready for right now, at least consider investing in an electrician for some preventative maintenance.

An electrician can help identify potential problems and recommend correcting them before they happen. Contact Mister Sparky of Myrtle Beach for all your electrical needs in the Conway, SC area. We are the go-to company for all residential, commercial, and industrial needs. We offer emergency services 24 hours a day, seven days a week so give us a call today.

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