Test Your Energy Efficiency Against These 3 Myths

With the push continuing to conserve as much energy as possible, individuals are coming up with a huge number of tips and tricks that they are convinced save both electricity and money. However – which are myths and which are true? Below we’ll take a quick look at a few myths that you may want to avoid if you are serious about conserving energy.

1. Closing your Vents is Worse than you Think

In the days of fireplaces and homes without insulation, closing off the vents or ducts to rooms that were not in use was helpful for saving heat by channeling it to the rooms that did need it. In modern times, closing off your vents has actually been proven to be a waste of energy due to inefficiencies in ducting and air flow resistance. Leave your vents open and open up the doors to rooms when the heat is on to spread warm air evenly throughout all areas of the home.

2. Leaving your Lights On to Save Energy? You can Stop Now

Early on in the history of fluorescent lights people started to believe that leaving the lights on consumed less energy than shutting them off due to the higher voltage required to fire up the light. While this is partially true, the additional energy required to power on / shut off fluorescent lights is miniscule compared to leaving them running all day long. It’s far more energy efficient to turn the lights off when they are not in use.

3. The Myth of ‘Energy Efficient’ Air-Conditioners

While it’s true that there are some models of air conditioner on the market that are more energy-efficient than others, the energy wasted by an air conditioner typically comes from a variety of other sources. The main inefficiency with air conditioners is improper installation and sizing, which causes a poor seal around the air conditioner and allows the newly-chilled air to slip right back outside. Ensure your air conditioner is properly sealed and that all windows are closed for better efficiency.

These are just a few of the better-known tips out there that just don’t work for saving energy. The best way to figure out if something works is to try it and measure the difference; remember: if a tip makes energy savings claims that defy the laws of physics or sound too good to be true, they probably are.