Lower Your Gas Heating Bill in 4 Steps
Do you get a bit of a shock each time your gas heating bill arrives? If you dread opening that letter or email, it’s time to think about how you can lower the bill effectively without sacrificing anything you need around the house. This article will offer some practical tips on how to do just that.
If the steps you need to take to lower your gas heating bill include any maintenance, repair, or installation work, turn to Walker Air • Plumbing • Electric for assistance. With a long history of serving customers throughout the Metroplex, you will be in good hands with our team from start to finish. Reach out today to learn more.
Step #1 – Address Insulation Issues
Proper insulation is one of the best steps you can take toward improved energy efficiency. And, when your system is more efficient, it will cost you less to run month after month. So, in a quest to bring down your bill and make your home more comfortable, think about improving the insulation that serves your house.
If you are an experienced DIYer, you might make some improvements to your insulation on your own. If not, you can bring in a contractor to review the current status of your insulation and determine how it can improve. Often, upgrading attic insulation allows you to keep more of the heat you pump into your home actually inside the house, reducing how hard your HVAC needs to work to reach a comfortable temperature.
Step #2 – Change Your Patterns
Adjusting the way you use your heating system can create lower bills. For example, do you dress the same way inside your home in the winter as you do in the summer? If so, you might heat your house more than is necessary, and you are paying for all of that heat. Instead of wearing shorts and t-shirts all winter long, consider switching to pants and a jacket and turn down the thermostat.
You can also alter the way you manage your system when away from the house to optimize efficiency. If you are only going to be gone for a few hours, it’s probably best to leave the system alone, as this will avoid a big temperature drop and the significant energy required to bring the temperature back up from that drop. However, if you’ll be gone for a couple of days, setting the system to a much lower temperature than when you are home is probably the right way to go.
Step #3 – Manage Fireplace Use
Running a gas fireplace is a nice way to add a cozy ambiance to your home, but it is not an efficient use of gas in terms of heating. Most of the heat produced by a gas fireplace is lost to the outside, so don’t think of this appliance as a good option for bringing up the temperature of a room. Run your fireplace only when you are present to enjoy it, and trust your HVAC system to do the work of maintaining the temperature of the house properly.
Step #4 – Upgrade Equipment
Finally, look into upgrading some of the equipment in your house to cut down on gas use, such as AC installation or heating installation. If you lived in your home for many years and you are still using original HVAC gear, it’s likely that new equipment could cut down dramatically on how much gas you use to keep the house comfortable. Not only will this upgrade save you money on your monthly bills, but it will offer better performance and more consistent results.
Another piece of equipment to look at for an affordable upgrade is your thermostat. Adding a smart thermostat will enable you to control everything about your HVAC system with your phone, meaning you can make changes while in bed or even when you aren’t home. So, if you forget to change a setting, or if you turn the heat down while away and want to warm it up before you arrive back home, you’ll be able to make those changes quickly and easily.
Is It Time to Lower a Gas Heating Bill?
It’s easy enough to put off this matter month after month, with other things occupying your time. These bills will not go down on their own, however, so consider getting started today on finding solutions to the problem. As a first step, reach out to Walker Air • Plumbing • Electric for advice and any repair or maintenance work your system may need. Thank you for stopping by!
