Archive for category: Efficiency

Caulking is one of the easiest fall home-improvement chores. Here’s a step-by-step guide to getting started.

A note: Caulk around the windows’ molding and stay away from the movable parts that allow you to open and close the windows.

1. Caulk on a day when your windows are completely dry inside and out and on a day that is not extremely hot or cold.
2. Choose a good caulk: Some can be painted; different kinds are compatible with masonry, vinyl or wood; some are formulated for use in humid climates. Also, different caulks are for indoor or outdoor use. Read the label before purchasing.
3. Collect the caulk, a caulk gun with a trigger, a putty knife, a sponge or rags, and a wire brush.
4. Use the putty knife to scrape the old caulk off of the windows. If it won’t budge, buy a caulk softener.
5. Clean the windows with a damp sponge or rag and then dry them. Wait until they are completely dry to apply fresh caulk.
6. Fill the caulk gun with caulk and point it to the corner of the window farthest from you. Press the trigger and work your way backward. Get caulk in all of the joints.
7. Smooth out the caulk by applying water to your fingers and working it into the cracks.
8. Let the caulk dry, which can take several hours.
9. Read the instructions that come with the caulk and the caulk gun; they’re more detailed and full of tips for success.

If the air inside your house is dusty, it might mean your air conditioning ducts have sprung leaks.  

If you’re changing your air conditioner filter regularly, it will trap dust and pollutants that get into the indoor air so they never make their way into the duct system—or back into the air.  

But if the ducts have tiny holes or cracks or joints that aren’t well-sealed, dust can bypass the filter and sneak directly into the ducts. Once dust gets in there, the duct system will blow it all over the house. 

Dust in the ducts and in the air can raise the temperature in your home and force your air conditioning system to operate inefficiently and struggle to keep your home cool during the summer. 

It’s well worth it to have the ducts of your air conditioning system sealed at the joints. 

Not only will it prevent dust from flying around your house, it could reduce your air conditioning bills this summer. The average house loses about 20 percent of its conditioned air through ducts that are improperly installed or are leaking at the joints. 

A house with “clean” air also is less likely to trigger dust and pollen allergies to family members while they’re indoors. 

If Thanksgiving or Christmas will be celebrated at your house this year, your family members aren’t the only ones who will be stuffed. So will your refrigerator. 

Is it up to the task? 

In fact, if your fridge is more than a decade old, it might not be. Today’s models—those bearing the Energy Star label, at least—use at last 15 percent less energy than current federal standards require, and 40 percent less than models in the early 2000s, according to the Department of Energy.  

Yet more than 60 million households have refrigerators that are more than 10 years old, DOE says. By replacing it with a new, energy-efficient model, you could save up to $300 in electricity charges over its lifetime. 

When shopping for a new refrigerator or freezer, read the EnergyGuide label. It tells you how many kilowatt-hours of electricity the unit will consume over a year of operation. The smaller the number, the better. Look for refrigerators that have a freezer on the bottom or the top, as side-by-side designs consume more energy. Chest freezers are typically better insulated than upright models.  

Whether you’re buying a new fridge this year or not, follow these tips for more efficient use around the holidays: 

• Brush or vacuum your refrigerator’s coils regularly to improve efficiency by as much as 30 percent. 
• Keeping your refrigerator full shouldn’t be hard this time of year and doing so will help your unit retain cold better. If you have trouble keeping it stocked, fill the extra space with bottles or containers of water.
• If your milk is frosty in the morning, reduce the refrigerator’s temperature. Refrigerators should be set between 36 degrees and 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Freezers should stay between 0 degrees and 5 degrees.
• Put a dollar bill in the door’s seal to see if it is airtight. If the dollar slips out easily, so will cold air.  

Staying home more often than usual means you’re probably using your appliances nonstop. And that means you need to clean them more often.

Don’t overlook the appliances that aren’t in the kitchen.

It seems like your clothes washer would be a self-cleaning machine because it’s used for cleaning. But the more you use it, the more it needs a good scrubbing to get rid of built-up detergent and ward off mold.

Here are a few pre-spring cleaning tips for the laundry room:

Top-loading washers: Built-up detergent and fabric softeners can clog the machine if you don’t remove it regularly. To do that, remove the dispensers for those liquids and scrub them with soap, water and a non-scratch sponge. Then, fill the washer with hot water and add a cup of bleach. Let it sit for an hour before running a full wash cycle—with an empty tub. Then, fill it again, and this time add a cup of white vinegar and run a full wash cycle again. Finally, run a wash cycle with nothing but hot water.

For your first load of laundry after you clean the tub, wash whites only in case any residual bleach is still in the washer.

Front-loading washers: Get rid of mold and grime that get trapped in the door seal. Use a toothbrush and a solution of eight or nine cups of water and one cup of bleach to scrub the seal. Then, clean the tub the same way you would sanitize a top-loader, above.

Don’t forget about your dishwasher, too. Many people do not realize that newer dishwashers have filters that should be cleaned manually. Be sure to remove and clean the filter monthly of food particles and grease buildup that cause bad smells in your dishwasher. Clean debris away from the filter, then twist filter to remove (or consult your manufacturer’s guide). Scrub the filter with a soft brush or cloth under hot water until clean; then replace filter.