Summer’s heat isn’t about to let up any time soon. Here are 10 tips for staying cool and keeping your energy bill down by taking care of your home and your HVAC system.
Mark Mulligan, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographerTemperatures are likely to flirt with triple digits across Texas for a while, so it’s worth making sure you’re doing everything you can to keep your energy use down — both to prevent blackouts and to keep your electric bill lower.
One way to tell if you’re spending too much on electricity is the 10 percent rule: Your monthly utility bill shouldn’t be more than 10 percent of the square footage of your home. For a 2,500-square-foot home, that would be no more than $250 a month. If it’s more than that, look at any of these ways to make your home more energy efficient.
3. If leaves, pine needles or other debris get on or in the unit, spray it loose with a garden hose using a pressure nozzle. Debris can limit the amount of air that flows to the coils, so keep the outside coils clean and debris out. 7. Use foam shields under electrical outlet switch plates. While outlets don’t let in lots of hot air, they do let some in, and covering them is an easy thing to do.