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Energy Saving Tips

Small Appliances Cook with small appliances. Cook with your toaster oven, electric skillet and slow cooker for specialized jobs, rather than the range. Small appliances use less energy. Use the microwave. Microwave ovens shorten cooking times, which saves energy. Clean or replace air filters. Replace filters on exhaust hoods,...

Refrigerator Gasket

Replace your refrigerator gasket on your own. A cracked or worn refrigerator gasket wastes energy and it costs you a lot of money. But, replacing it is easy. Just follow these simple steps to replace yours. Write down your model number and purchase a new gasket at your local...

Energy-saving Landscape

Planting trees can help save on your energy bills. Carefully positioned trees can save up to 25% of a typical household’s energy for heating and cooling. Just three trees, properly placed around the house, can save an average household between $100 and $250 in heating and cooling energy costs...

Windows

Thinking about replacing the windows in your home? Here are some helpful tips that you need to know when you begin looking for the best windows for your home. Air infiltration. This refers to the movement of air at a different temperature through the different interfacing surfaces of the...

Furnaces

Furnace efficiency. Today, new furnaces are generally between 80-96% efficient. If a furnace is 96% efficient, it simply means that 96% of the energy that goes into the furnace is converted into heat. Older furnaces or furnaces that are in homes that are 15 years old or more, can...

Winter Home Checklist

Here’s a great list of tips you can use as a check list of “to-do” items this winter. Install extra insulation. Install plastic sheets on windows requiring extra protection from the wind (kits are widely available at hardware stores or home centers). Add weather stripping around doors if necessary....

Dryer Fires

Be safe with your dryer. In 1997, according to the United States Consumer Products Safety Commission, there were 16,800 residential fires reported and responded to by fire departments where the source of the fire was the clothes dryer or vent. These fires caused $97.3 million in damage, 430 injuries,...

Spring Checklist

Here’s a great checklist to follow every spring to be sure your home is in great shape and your family is safe. Replace your furnace filter. Clean the kitchen exhaust hood and air filter. Check your electrical system. Always have a multi-purpose fire extinguisher accessible. Make sure the light...

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