How Hiring an Energy Inspector Can Save You Money

Some of the building's living space is above this unheated, uninsulated basement, and is likely to be colder than the rest of the building during the winter. Adding insulation between the basement ceiling and the floor above it wouldn't provide as much in the way of savings as it would cost to do, unfortunately, but it would make the living space warmer, and might allow us to turn the thermostat lower than we've kept it in the past.

The programmable thermostat we have allows us to automatically turn the heat down while people are at work and sleeping and turn it up in mornings, evenings and on weekends, when we're home. These gadgets can knock $15 to $20 off of your energy bills if you have both central air conditioning and central heating, so it was a smart, and small, investment on our part to get one.

I was happy to find out that we were doing things efficiently and that no major investments were warranted. But it's always disappointing to hear that you can't get your bills lower than they already are.

Next week: To prepare for Halloween, I'll tackle vampires -- the electricity-sucking gadgets that fill my house, and probably yours as well.

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