DEBUNKING ENERGY-SAVING MYTHS

What you think you know about home heating and cooling can cost you money. Over the last 10 years or so energy costs have gotten astronomical, so everyone and their brother are trying to come up with ways to save money by saving energy. However, some of the things people do or suggest are just plain wrong. They may make sense from a theory point of view, but in practice, they don’t hold up quite as well. Check out these issues below to make sure you aren’t falling into the trap of an old wives tale or urban legend.

1) DUCT TAPE WILL HELP WITH SEALING DUCTS.

This is not true or efficient. Duct tape, despite the name, is a great solution for a great many things. However, ducts aren’t included in this list. Duct tape doesn’t work well in dusty places and ducts are some of the dustiest out there. Duct tape tends to fail rather quickly when applied to seal ducts.

2) LEAVING DEVICES TURNED ON WILL SAVE MORE ENERGY THAN TURNING THEM ON AND OFF REPEATEDLY.

NOT TRUE! Any time a light, appliance or even your laptop is turned off you are saving energy. Despite having to turn something on, the myth is that it takes some gigantic amount of energy to do so. This is simply not true and doesn’t use nearly as much energy as leaving it on for hours on end.

3) A LEAKY OR DRIPPING FAUCET ISN’T A BIG DEAL.

Bonkers! A leaky or dripping faucet might as well be leaking pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters. A single drip from a faucet could add up to over 300 gallons of water a year. If that’s not a big deal to you maybe you accidentally stumbled on this article.

4) THE HIGHER YOU SET YOUR THERMOSTAT THE FASTER YOUR FURNACE WILL HEAT IT.

Nope. Your furnace will work at the same efficiency whether you set it to 65 or 75 degrees. So when you go and forget you wanted it to be precisely 71 and your furnace runs until it’s 75, you’re going to waste even more money. Set your thermostat to what temperature you’d like it at, and leave it to save the most energy.

5) FIBERGLASS INSULATION KEEPS COLD AIR OUT OF YOUR HOME.

In actuality, fiberglass insulation is great at keeping warm air in your home, but not necessarily good at keeping the cold air out. Any types of cracks or loose seals in your home are going to let colder air in. The best way to keep cold air out is to caulk all windows, seal any drafty areas and feel around windows and doors for any places heat may escape.