Your bedroom and bathroom might seem like your garage door, nothing more than mere necessities. That may be true, but you can’t live without a bathroom, and a great night’s sleep is solely dependent on how comfortable your bed is.
Well, there a few changes you can make in these important rooms to save some money and energy while not sacrificing comfort or functionality:
- Start by testing your showerhead. Get a half-gallon-sized milk carton and place it into the shower stream while it is on fully. If the carton fills in 10 seconds or less, you should look into a more energy efficient showerhead. The same pressure can be achieved using far less water, and you’ll be saving money and energy.
- Take showers over baths. This saves at least five gallons of water each time.
- Monitor your water habits. When shaving, shut off the water. The same goes for brushing your teeth, as there is no need to leave the water running while you brush. These few tips will save up to two gallons of water every minute.
- Make sure faucets are firmly turned off when you are finished, especially your hot water tap. Leaky faucets should be immediately replaced. A faucet that leaks only a drop each second will waste over 250 gallons a month.
- Consider a flow restrictor for your shower. Installing one can cut your per-shower costs in half, and it costs less than a dollar.
- Ensure that all bathrooms have functional and high-quality ventilation fans. Doing so will ensure moisture control and better air quality. Consider an ENERGY STAR fan, which uses far less energy and runs considerably quieter. A humidistat control or programmable timer can help to maintain proper ventilation without using excessive energy.
- Close off the radiators and heating vents in unused rooms like your bedroom.
- Install draft guards on the bottoms of any doors that lead to areas that are not heated or air conditioned.
- Check if your ceiling fans are reversible, allowing you to push the warmer air downward during winter.
- Keep closet doors closed. There is no need to heat or cool your clothing or storage items.
- Clear the pathways of air vents and heating registers. Also, be sure to regularly clean your furnace filters.
- Use the natural daylight to your advantage. Having loose-woven curtains in your windows will give you privacy while also allowing the sun to penetrate and heat your home.
- Consider opening up your drapes during the day and let the sun do what it is intended to do—heat your home.
- Use light-colored wall paints that reflect the daylight well.
- Insulate all sides of and use a bulky comforter on a waterbed to reduce the heating costs. The average waterbed costs about $100 per year to heat.
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