Be A Scrooge Where It Counts (Your Heat Bill)

Did the holidays leave your wallet light? Help get the budget back on track by making sure that you’re not padding one of the winter’s biggest expenses: the heating bill.

PSE&G recently offered the following money and energy saving tips:

• Lower your thermostat by just 1 degree, which may reduce your heating bill by up to 3 percent. Save even more by lowering your thermostat 2 degrees during the day when you are home, and 5 to 10 degrees when you are away and at bedtime, if health conditions permit.
• Change thermostat batteries once a year, or when the low battery indicator appears on the digital display.
• Close fireplace dampers when not in use.
• Close and latch windows.
• Move furniture and drapes away from heating registers, radiators and baseboard element covers. Open register or baseboard dampers.
• Remove or cover window air conditioners to reduce drafts.
• Open your curtains and blinds that face the sun on sunny days to warm your home, and close them at night to keep the warm air inside.
• Use weather stripping or caulk to seal cracks and prevent drafts in windows and doorframes. Beneath doors, install draft guards available at hardware stores.
• Keep your garage door closed if the garage is attached to the house.
• Check for sufficient water levels in the sight glass for steam heating systems to ensure maximum efficiency. Clean or replace the furnace filter on hot air heating systems.

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