The holidays are the most wonderful time of the year, according to the song. But that’s not the case if you’re watching your money. It’s so easy to go overboard with all the extra food you need for entertaining and all the presents you need to buy. But it is possible to save energy.

Follow these tips, and you’ll have more money to spend for the holidays–or more money to squirrel away for the summer vacation you’re already dreaming about.

Decorating

  • Ditch those old Christmas lights and replace them with energy-saving LED lights. They’re not only more efficient, but also safer. And some come with rebates and coupons.
  • Use a timer. Avoid keeping your lights on all night. Set the timer to turn off the lights at 9 p.m., when most families aren’t out looking at the lights anymore.
  • Reduce your reliance on lights. Add sparkle–or intensify what you have–by using tinsel and other reflective decorations.

Entertaining

  • Use the oven-door window to check on what you’re baking. When you open the door, the oven quickly loses heat–possibly extending your baking time.
  • Most ovens are spacious and can easily accommodate more than one dish. Take advantage of the space and the energy savings by baking more than one item at a time.
  • Use your refrigerator wisely. A full refrigerator uses less energy than an empty one. So you have an automatic savings during the holidays, when you’re buying more food. Avoid opening and closing the refrigerator door as much as possible. For example, when you’re baking, take everything out of the refrigerator at the same time. Your ingredients need to be at room temperature anyway.
  • Make sure the temperature of your water heater is set at an energy-saving 120 degrees. More people staying with you mean that your water-heating bills (and your water bills) could rise without any energy-saving measures.

Enjoy these holiday energy-saving tips from your friends at Comfort Systems in Wichita. Contact us for any of your HVAC needs, and you can count on dependable service and top-notch products.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Wichita, Kansas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about energy-saving and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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