Monday, August 15, 2016

Energy Audit: Get an Electrician to Conduct a Thorough Inspection



Be it a home or an office, a one story commercial space or a large building, having an energy audit done is imperative. You must be proactive and hire an electrician to conduct a thorough inspection of your home or office to know exactly how you are consuming the energy that you are paying for. It is quite possible that you are wasting a bit or a lot of your energy, consciously or unknowingly. 

There are two types of energy audit you can opt for. Ideally, you should opt for both. The first one is simple because there are calculators available, both online and offline, and you can do it on your own. It is recommended that you get an electrician for both types of energy audit. 

The first energy audit would involve understanding how you are using the energy that you are consuming. For instance, there may be a microwave, a heater, air conditioner, a washing machine, several lights, television, computers, chargers, blenders and a plethora of other electrical and electronic devices that get used every day in your home or business. You must use the wattage of every device and how long you use them along with the per-unit cost of electricity to know how you are using the energy being consumed at your home or office every month. This is an easy exercise to look for a way if you can save some money by cutting down on using certain appliances. The least and most insignificant benefit to doing this is that you would get to know the nitty-gritty of your energy consumption.

The second energy audit involves looking for various keys that would indicate wastage of energy. This will require an extensive inspection by an electrician, and a detailed consultation with you. The inspection may show that you have plugged many devices and they are on standby but you are not using them. Appliances may be hooked and powered but not in use. The oven, the air conditioner and heater and several other appliances may be in use at higher settings than necessary. You may be wasting too much energy on your water heater. You may want to time the heating properly so you get to make the most of the water heater while the water is being heated, so it doesn’t cool down. You may even decide to change a few appliances if they are old, outdated, malfunctioning, consuming too much energy or if your needs have changed and they are no longer appropriate.

From the frequency of using your dishwasher and if you have loaded it optimally to the kind of lights you use, how long you keep your fridge door open to the kind of automation you have, everything will fall in the ambit of inspection done by Electricians Austin during an energy audit.

Energy Audit: Get an Electrician to Conduct a Thorough Inspection



Be it a home or an office, a one story commercial space or a large building, having an energy audit done is imperative. You must be proactive and hire an electrician to conduct a thorough inspection of your home or office to know exactly how you are consuming the energy that you are paying for. It is quite possible that you are wasting a bit or a lot of your energy, consciously or unknowingly. 

There are two types of energy audit you can opt for. Ideally, you should opt for both. The first one is simple because there are calculators available, both online and offline, and you can do it on your own. It is recommended that you get an electrician for both types of energy audit. 

The first energy audit would involve understanding how you are using the energy that you are consuming. For instance, there may be a microwave, a heater, air conditioner, a washing machine, several lights, television, computers, chargers, blenders and a plethora of other electrical and electronic devices that get used every day in your home or business. You must use the wattage of every device and how long you use them along with the per-unit cost of electricity to know how you are using the energy being consumed at your home or office every month. This is an easy exercise to look for a way if you can save some money by cutting down on using certain appliances. The least and most insignificant benefit to doing this is that you would get to know the nitty-gritty of your energy consumption.

The second energy audit involves looking for various keys that would indicate wastage of energy. This will require an extensive inspection by an electrician, and a detailed consultation with you. The inspection may show that you have plugged many devices and they are on standby but you are not using them. Appliances may be hooked and powered but not in use. The oven, the air conditioner and heater and several other appliances may be in use at higher settings than necessary. You may be wasting too much energy on your water heater. You may want to time the heating properly so you get to make the most of the water heater while the water is being heated, so it doesn’t cool down. You may even decide to change a few appliances if they are old, outdated, malfunctioning, consuming too much energy or if your needs have changed and they are no longer appropriate.

From the frequency of using your dishwasher and if you have loaded it optimally to the kind of lights you use, how long you keep your fridge door open to the kind of automation you have, everything will fall in the ambit of inspection done by Electricians Austin during an energy audit.

Outdoor Lighting: Light Up Your Patio, Deck, Lawn, Driveway & Backyard



What do you see when you look outside your window at night? Even if it is just after sunset, do you stay outdoors, hangout on your deck, enjoying your patio, possibly setting up a pergola on your lawn or getting busy with your hobby in your backyard? Unless you live in a residential building or apartment that’s around the city life, near the downtown areas, or in a very well-lit neighborhood, you are likely to have dark outdoor areas of your property. 

Most residential neighborhoods, especially those in the suburbs or upstate areas, don’t have a lot of lights lighting up the private spaces. The roads may be well lit, unless you are driving on a not so important highway, but the private premises which would include everything from your driveway to the backyard, your patio to the backdoor will not be well lit. Let’s face it, no one likes going to the dark side of the property at night.

Any property should be adequately lit. It should not be over the top as that would be a waste of energy and it should not be poorly lit or not lit at all. There are many reasons why you should call in your electrician and set up outdoor lighting. You don’t need to spend a small fortune. You don’t need elaborate arrangements. You can opt for humble lights or you can go for decorative lighting. As long as you are lighting up your outdoor, it is a great improvement.

Decorative lighting will highlight your deck, patio, lawn and backyard. You would find it convenient to park on the driveway more if it was equipped with cool lights. You would be tempted to sit and relax on your deck or just laze for a while. You can have an evening chat with your family on the front lawn or just make your patio look welcoming to your guests. While it is not relevant to talk about curb appeal, your home will look more beautiful with decorative lighting. 

If aesthetics isn’t a good enough reason for you then security should convince you to get an electrical company using Electricians Austin to install outdoor lighting. You may live in a safe neighborhood or one that has a history of theft, effective security lights will help deter trespassers. Your property should not be vulnerable to trespassing and it should not appear to be welcoming to people with nefarious intentions. When you have dark outdoor areas of your property, it is inviting for thieves and trespassers. So brighten up your home or business today and have some fun while you’re doing it.