Aside from your heating and cooling units, there are other appliances in your home—especially the kitchen—that will cause your energy bill to go from bearable to unbearable.
As an HVAC Company in Metro Atlanta, one of the things that we pride ourselves on is helping our clients save money with new heating and air conditioning units. However, that is not to say that installing a new unit will get rid of that spike in your energy bill. Sometimes it’s something as simple as substituting cold water for hot water or having your food thaw out before you begin cooking.
In the meantime, here are 5 simple energy-saving tips to consider for the kitchen:
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Try Not To Put Hot Leftovers in the Fridge.
In order to prevent your refrigerator from going into overdrive, allow those leftovers to cool to room temperature. What’s more, refrigerators are already right at the top of the list as one of the kitchen appliances that use the most energy. Therefore, prohibit it from sucking up more energy by giving it less to cool!
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You Can Thaw Your Food Before You Cook, But You Can Also Thaw It In The Fridge.
Instead of letting the burgers, chicken, steak or bacon thaw in the sink, allow it to thaw in the fridge. This tip is especially useful if it is the wintertime and you are trying to keep the house warm. Allow those frozen items to let the cold air into the fridge which in turn helps to keep other items cool, and thus your refrigerator from overworking.
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Let Those Cookies Bake And That Turkey Cook—Only Open The Oven When You Need To!
Considering this tip has two benefits. Limiting the amount of times you open your oven in the summer will prevent your AC unit from working harder because you are lessening the amount of heat that escapes your oven. Also, keeping it closed as much as possible while it’s in use will allow it to better maintain its temperature and therefore use less energy to heat up again!
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Fill Up Your Dishwasher All The Way And Have Those Dishes Air Dry!
This is the easiest tip to remember, make sure your dishwasher is full, but not overloaded. Although it’s tempting to run the dishwasher when it’s half full (especially because it’s easier and faster to empty) there is no denying that running it while it’s full will help you save in the long run. Also, instead of having the machine dry your dishes, open the washer and allow them to air dry!
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Unplug Your Toaster & Other Appliances You Don’t Need Running 24/7.
Aside from the toaster in your kitchen, there are countless other appliances (that don’t need to run 24/7) you can unplug to save energy. Not to mention, many of these appliances also generate heat—which is huge inconvenience for your air conditioning unit. Some of these appliances are laptops, radios and cell phone chargers.
In the end, there are countless little things that you can do to help keep your energy bill down. However, it’s just a matter of remembering to do them, and making sure everyone else does!
