Summer is known for rest and relaxation, but it’s also one of the busiest energy seasons of the year. Don’t let that news give you the summertime blues: Start strong and save green all summer long with these low-cost and no-cost energy-saving tips.
Stay chill without blowing up your bill.
Your refrigerator and freezer are essential to keeping your lemonade and popsicles cold all summer long. But all that energy can really add up.
Here are few tips to make your refrigerator and freezer more energy efficient: Set the thermostat between 35 and 38 degrees Fahrenheit for the refrigerator and between 0 and 5 degrees Fahrenheit for the freezer; check the door seal and vacuum the coils, and make sure your fridge is always full of food (or even just jugs of water), so there’s less air space for it to have to cool.
Go beyond burgers and cook more outside.
A summer without grilling just wouldn’t be summer. Here’s some good news: Grilling outside uses way less energy than cooking inside.
Go beyond steaks, burgers, and hot dogs, and look for ways to cook outside instead of using your kitchen’s oven, stove or microwave.
Save even more: Eat outside and give your A/C the night off. While you’re enjoying the summer breeze, bump your A/C to 80 degrees, which is more energy efficient than turning it off.
Do your chores during cooler times of the day.
Here’s a good excuse to put off some chores. Doing laundry, using your dishwasher and cooking are heat-producing tasks, which means your air conditioner has to work harder to keep your home cool. Do these tasks in the morning or evening when it’s cooler to help keep energy costs down and your living space comfortable.
Save even more: Give your A/C a break and switch your ceiling fan to spin counter-clockwise. Just remember that fans cool people, not rooms, so turn it off when you leave the room. We’re big fans of box fans too!
Go old-school and dry your laundry on a line.
Take advantage of the warm weather and dry your clothes on a clothesline instead. To take out the stiffness, move your clothes to the dryer when they’re almost dry and add a fabric softener sheet. Drying your clothes outside for even a little bit makes a big difference.
Save even more: Still using an old dryer? Switch to an ENERGY STAR-certified clothes dryer instead! You’ll save a bunch of energy and get a $50 rebate from us.
For summertime, energy-saving ideas, just do these four and being energy efficient won’t be a chore.