View Electric - Energy Efficiency

Natural gas costs have increased dramatically this year. This is not expected to be a permanent situation, but will correct itself over time as additional supplies of gas come onto the market. In the meantime, taking simple actions can reduce energy consumption and minimize energy loss. In fact, just by reducing leaks around the house the average household can cut 10 percent from the monthly energy bill! CoServ Gas would like to offer the following tips to help you control your gas consumption:

Around The House

• Use gas appliances as they were intended to be used. Don't use the stove to warm the house.
• Make sure the insulation in the attic is at the recommended level.

Windows

• Check the condition of your weather stripping around windows and doors and replace if necessary.
• If your home's windows only have a single pane of glass you may be able to save on heating and cooling bills by adding storm windows.
• In the winter, keep the window covered with drapes or blinds to reduce heat flowing out. These window coverings add insulation to the glass and make it harder for your home's heat to escape. If the windows face south, east or west, open the curtains when the sun shines through the windows - this is essentially free heat. Windows that face north don't get direct sunlight, so keeping them covered as much as possible in the winter makes sense.
• While you're looking at your home's windows, is there a way to shade them or keep the sunlight out during the cooling season? Consider awnings on the outside or drapes or blinds on the inside that can be used to block the sun.

Heating and Cooling

• Clean the area around your air conditioning unit and replace the filters every 30 days. Dust and debris makes your heater less efficient. Use receipt of your CoServ bill as a reminder to clean the filters.
• Check the temperature setting on your thermostat. In the winter it should be set at the lowest temperature that keeps the house comfortable. Many recommend trying to keep it at 68° - 70°. Similarly, in the summer, it should be set at the highest comfortable setting. Try for 78° - 80°.
• Install an automatic setback or programmable thermostat and turn your thermostat back 10 - 15% during the day.
• Warm air rises. Use registers to direct warm air-flow across the floor.
• If you have a fireplace in your home, check to see if the damper/flue is open or closed. If it is open when the heating or cooling system is on, it lets heated or cooled air escape up the chimney. Remember, if you have gas logs for your fireplace, you are using a constant flow of gas to light them, so you may want to avoid using then this winter. Gas logs are not very energy efficient.
• Swimming pool heaters use large quantities of gas, particularly in the winter, so you may want to avoid using your pool heater this winter. If you have installed a pool with a pool heater or a hot tub after your home was built, you need to contact us to change your meter. The meter on your home is a standard size and will not adequately accommodate your pool. The correct size meter will use gas more efficiently.
• Keep doors to the outside closed when the heat or air conditioning is on and close them quickly when you come in or go out. Each time you open a door while the heating or cooling system is operating heated or cooled air escapes.

Water

• Check the temperature of your home's hot water. Let the hot water in your kitchen sink run until it gets hot. Fill a glass with hot water and put a thermometer in the water to check the temperature. (Make sure you use a thermometer made for measuring high temperatures, not the kind for taking people's temperature.) Most homes can get by with the water heater set to provide 120°F water. If your water is hotter than this, consider turning the water heater's setting down to the lowest setting that still provides sufficient hot water. Gas water heating is a typical family's third-largest energy expense.
• Place your hand on the side of your home's water heater. Is it warm to the touch? If it is, it is losing heat through its sides that is supposed to stay in your home's hot water. Consider installing an insulating blanket around the tank.

CoServ Gas continues to do everything we can to purchase gas at the best price, but this is impacted by the prevailing market price. Remember, there is no mark-up on gas. We do not make any more on the gas since we only pass through what we have to pay for the gas. If you will do what you can to conserve, we'll do what we can to keep the gas cost as low as possible.