In the age of the internet, you can find lots of advice on ways to save energy at home. However, while energy-efficient products and technologies have evolved over the years, sometimes the advice you encounter has not. See what the experts at ENERGY STAR have to say about five common myths about how to save energy at home:
Myth 1: It’s more energy and water-efficient to handwash your dishes instead of running your dishwasher.
It can feel counterintuitive to think that running an appliance is more energy-saving than washing things by hand. However, appliances like dishwashers have been engineered over the years to use energy and water efficiently, helping you save energy, water, and time. This is also partly because it’s easy to underestimate how much water is coming out of your faucet while hand-washing, and using your water heater to heat that water also consumes a lot of energy.
Myth 2: Running longer cycles on appliances like your dishwasher and clothes washer will use more energy, whereas using shorter cycles will help you save energy.
Although using a “quick cycle” means that your appliance will run for a shorter period, quick cycles are designed to save you time — not energy, water, or money. Contrary to what you might expect, some of the technologies in newer appliances may require them to run for a longer period, yet they can be significantly more efficient.
A good example of this is a heat pump dryer, which has a longer drying cycle but is approximately 30% more efficient than a standard clothes dryer. Heat pump dryers dry clothes at a lower temperature, which saves energy and ends up being gentler on your clothes.
Myth 3: To save money on heating and cooling costs, the best thing to do is set your thermostat
and then leave it alone.
Your home’s heating and cooling costs account for nearly half of your annual energy use. The most efficient way to manage your heating and cooling is by using a smart thermostat, which can learn your temperature preferences and automatically adjust for comfort or energy efficiency without requiring manual monitoring and adjustment.
While your thermostat itself does not use much energy, it’s a key factor in saving energy at home as it controls your heating and cooling systems, which are the biggest energy users. Upgrading your thermostat to an ENERGY STAR-certified smart thermostat is a relatively inexpensive project that can reduce your heating and cooling bills by about $50 to $100 a year on average.
Myth 4: Your energy bill is only impacted by the products that plug into your power source and use electricity.
When considering ways to reduce energy waste in your home, your home’s envelope may not even be something that comes to mind. It’s estimated that nine out of 10 homes in the U.S. are under-insulated — and unlike when your air conditioning or water heater has issues, where you know immediately if you have a problem, inadequate sealing and insulation is something that easily goes unnoticed.
By sealing air leaks around your home and ensuring you have adequate attic insulation, you can reduce your total home energy use by 10 to 11% and lower your heating and cooling costs by approximately 15%. These energy savings can be even more significant in colder climates.
Source: ENERGY STAR
