Many Shades Of “Free”
If you spend $12k for something that brings you $50k of value, did you really spend any money, or did you make an investment? In such an instance, your $12k investment brought $38k profit after its own extraction.
Accordingly, it was more than “free”; it just took time for the “freeness” to kick in. This is said tongue-in-cheek, but when it comes to energy costs, it’s a very real way to approach the issue. Following, we’ll explore multiple shades of “free” as a means of helping you immediately cut your energy expenses. As an example, when your batteries get old, they need more frequent charging hence increasing energy consumption. The best thing you can do in such a situation is to opt for battery replacements.
1. HVAC: Turn It Off, Use Natural Ventilation And Fireplaces
HVAC runs up your energy bill. Do you have a fireplace? Seal all the windows, ensure they are sealed, reinforce walls with interior insulation like throws, tapestries, or curtains. Use the fireplace instead of the thermostat—as much as you can.
In summer, batten down the hatches just before it gets light, and open everything when it gets dark. Your home will retain the cool of the evening with such a strategy; toward afternoon you can start opening up windows again for a breeze. Also, you can find ways of diverting heat through technology—more on that shortly.
2. Unplug All Devices
Even when appliances aren’t running, leaving them plugged initiates a parasitic draw. Over time, that adds up on your utility bill. Whenever you’re done using something, unplug it. Get into this habit, and you’ll shave dollars off your bill annually.
3. Don’t Wash Many Little Loads, Wash One Big Load, Air-Dry It
Instead of watching a lot of tiny loads, wash the biggest load you can at intervals. Then, don’t use the dryer; hang out the clothes, let them air dry, and fold them up. This can cut a lot off your electrical bill.
4. Green Energy Like Solar
You can immediately cut the majority of energy costs if you make your energy green; however it’s not exactly free. It’s easier with solar than wind or water, presently. A 3.1 kWh solar energy array can be purchased for around $100 per 100-Watts, if you’re clever in your acquisitions. Believe it or not, you can install such an array yourself, and see the whole job done under $10k—under $5k if you’re really careful. With all the heat and sunshine in somewhere like Texas, this would be perfect. You can contact any electric companies in Texas for more information.
You simply mount panels on your roof and run electricity lines into a surge controller, and then an energy bank; usually six to twelve golf-cart batteries networked together. Hook up a power inverter of some variety to that, you’ve got free power. A Consultation helps you ensure you mount in the right place. As an added benefit, mounted panels divert the heat from the sun, keeping the home beneath cooler longer during even hotter days.
At the very least, you’ll cut your energy bill in half, and it turns out a solar energy array brings about $16k+ property value increase as the national average—it’s around $18k in California. You might totally offset that bill altogether. Between monthly savings and property value, solar energy pays for itself, and is “more than” free.
5. Fix Leaky Faucets, Reduce Shower Time
Leaky faucets gradually increase your water bill. A drop every two seconds is twenty gallons a week. Each leaky faucet you fix could save 1,040 gallons a year. Cut shower time in half daily to see even more savings.
6. Gravity Lights
A gravity light is like a cuckoo clock, but in terms of illumination. A weight slowly pulls down on a mechanism that initiates a charge. The light shines until the weight hits its limit, and you simply reset it.
Totally free energy—after the initial purchase. Use it for a year, it pays for itself. Here’s one from Amazon.com. That’s probably not the best on the market, though it’s rated well. Shop around a bit to find what suits you, that one’s about $69.
Sustainable, Cost-Cutting Energy Strategy
Gravity lights, fixed faucets, shorter showers, solar energy arrays, strategic laundry machin usage, unplugging devices after use, and reducing HVAC reliance represent free ways to drastically reduce monthly energy bills. You might even initiate long-term profit through renewable energy ROI.
2 Comments
James william
Exactly, simply mount panels on your roof and run electricity lines into a surge controller, and then an energy bank; usually, six to twelve golf-cart batteries networked together. Hook up a power inverter of some variety to that, you’ve got free power.
Travis
Thanks for the added info.