Summertime means cranking that air conditioning in the house to cool it down which can really impact your home’s energy consumption. Today I’m here to share a few things that you can do around your home to help make your space more comfortable and energy efficient, which reduces your impact on the environment.

So let’s get started!

#1: Replace Your Indoor and Outdoor Light Bulbs with LED’s

Replacing your light bulbs is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to make your home more energy efficient. Typical CFL or older
incandescent bulbs use anywhere from 40w-100w a piece and the newer LED equivalents typically range from 10-20w for the same light output.
They’re a little more expensive on the front end, but their bulb life is exponentially longer and the cost savings on your energy bill adds up quickly.

Many people may think to replace their interior bulbs. Also, consider replacing exterior landscape bulbs and motion lights. It’s not uncommon for exterior bulbs to be 150w so replacing them can add up to
significant savings over time.

#2: Inspect Your Attic Insulation and Replace it if Necessary

One specific area to consider is your attic. If you’re like me, it’s not an area you particularly like to work in. Still, it’s a vital part of keeping your home as efficient as possible. It keeps heat in during the winter, but it also helps keep the heat of your roof from radiating into your living space in the summer.

Go into your attic and make sure that insulation coats the entire living space. It may be blown in, in batt form, or a combination of the two. If your insulation is sporadic, very thin, or has been infested with critters, consider having it replaced or adding additional insulation on top.

#3: Update Your Old Thermostat to a New Smart Thermostat

Upgrading your HVAC themostat provides
another environmentally friendly tool in saving energy. A programmable thermostat allows you to set back your home’s temperature when you’re away, such as at work for the day or on a lengthy vacation. For instance, you can program up to 4 schedules a day, 7 days a week. Smart versions like the Trane Connected Thermostat – XL 824 or XL1050 – expand those capabilities and give you the ability to adjust settings from anywhere when preferences or plans change.

In fact, these thermostats are so advanced, they also come with other key features like Wi-Fi connection, built-in
Nexia Bridge (which gives you the flexibility to remotely monitor and control over other smart home devices such as your home’s lights, locks, and even your garage).

#4: Clean Your HVAC Condenser and Change Your Air Filters

One of the easiest ways to make sure your HVAC system is functioning properly and not overworking is to connect with your local HVAC technician for a seasonal maintenance. Trane provides an awesome certified contractor locator to help you find a company nearby to come evaluate your system. Another option is to follow these basic steps to cleaning the outside condenser and change the air filter inside. 

1.) To clean your condenser coil, first make sure power is shut off to the unit by turning off the power at the disconnect near the unit. 2.) Use a shop vac with a soft bristle attachment to vacuum any loose material or debris that may be inhibiting the cooling coils from working properly. 3.) Use a foaming condenser cleaning product to spray all over the condenser and let it soak for about 10 minutes. 4.) Then rinse the coil with clear low pressure water to remove remaining dirt and debirs. 5.) After that, you’re good to turn the power back on. 

You should do this about once a year to make sure your condenser is clean and working properly. Also, while you’re at it, make sure that there are no plants or obstructions within about 12” all around the unit that make it hard for the unit to breathe properly. If there are, make sure to trim it back. Changing your filter is simple. Just find your air intake for your unit and replace it with the proper size filter. You can find the size you need written right on the side of the previous filter. I recommend you do this around every 3-6 months. 

#5: Replace Old Single Pane Windows with New Energy Star Rated Options

Adding replacement windows or updating windows around your home during a remodel project is a great way to improve the overall energy efficiency of your home. Old single pane windows allow the heat of the sun’s rays to radiate into the home. This can significantly raise the interior temperature which means your A/C system needs to work harder to cool the home.

New double paned windows have an insulating gas between the panes which allows for less heat energy transfer into the home and thus are much more energy efficient. A local window expert can help you decide on what types of windows are right for your home.

Hopefully these tips help give you some ideas to get your home’s energy consumption under control. Not only will it help save you money, but it can help lessen your environmental impact. If you are considering making some energy efficient improvements, I recommend looking at your local utility company’s website. Oftentimes, you can find rebates for energy efficient upgrades to your home that can help you offset those initial costs. Your local and state governments may also have some incentives to take advantage of. All it takes is a little research. 

I’d like to thank the Trane team for sending over the XL824 connected thermostat I installed in the video and for making this project possible. If you’d like some more information on additional energy efficient upgrades you can do around your home, check out Trane’s website.

Thank you, for watching and if it’s your first time visiting the channel, please hit that subscribe button and hit that notification bell so you never miss out on any of the new content I put out. And as always, I encourage you to leave me a comment
down below and let me know what energy improvements you plan on tackling down the road.

Thanks so much for watching and I’ll see you next time.

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Disclosure: This video and article contain a paid promotion by FilterBuy.com. Get your replacement air filters started today: https://bit.ly/2DoDfAD

#1: Install Plastic Window Insulation

Using heat shrink plastic and a blow-dryer can be a simple, effective way to help seal off windows and other small gaps to warm your home. Windows are one of the worst offenders in terms of letting in that cold air. Getting them replaced or fixed can cost a lot in time and money as well

Start by measuring your window. You’re going to want to use a sheet of plastic that is slightly larger than the window itself. Use the included double-sided tape to attach the plastic to the window frame. Just use a blow dryer to adhere it to the frame and window and smooth out any bubbles.

#2: Seal Gaps with Spray Foam

For areas like around electrical outlets, using a spray foam can be a good fix, especially in older homes. The area around electrical boxes can often be poorly sealed, which allows drafts to come in.

#3: Change Direction of Ceiling Fan

One of the easiest ways to keep your home warm in winter is reversing your ceiling fan. Because warm air rises, setting the blades this way will help push warm air back down into the room. It costs nothing, and can help a lot to warm your home.

#4: Lower Water Heater Temperature

This may sound a bit counter-intuitive, but with colder temperatures outside and inside, lowering that temperature on your water heater will still feel hot to you. It will also help lower the amount of energy you are using to keep it hot. Over time, this can add up and save you a fair amount of money.

#5: Change Your Furnace Air Filters

Your air filters should be changed every 3 months or so. I can be a hassle, but clean air is imperative to your health. As a bonus, it ensures your furnace will warm your home as optimally as possible.

If you don’t like dealing with the hassle of buying air filters every few months, check out FilterBuy.com. They are a direct-to-consumer H-VAC filter provider. Simply set how frequently you would like to receive your filters in the size you need, and it will ship to you within 24 hours.

This saves you a trip to the big box store, and they arrive when you need to change the filter. It’s just one less thing to worry about. They are also a family owned company that manufactures everything right here in the USA. I can’t recommend them enough.

#6: Install or Inspect Weatherstripping

Broken or damaged weatherstripping around doors can be a big problem in terms of keeping drafts out. Inspect your exterior doors, and see if the weatherstripping looks like it has any cracking or dry rot. Replace it if it shows signs of wear and tear.

#7: Utilize Door Sweeps and Draft Guards

Check the bottom of your doors to make sure the door sweeps don’t have drafts coming in beneath the door. In colder climates, you may even see some snow flowing in beneath the door too.

Use a tool like a laser thermometer for finding drafts that are harder to pinpoint.

#8: Install a Smart Thermostat

This option is great for making sure you are as efficient as possible with your energy usage. My Nest smart thermometer can even be accessed from my phone, so I can  set a schedule for when I am out of the home.

#9: Close Chimney Flues and Add a Cover

An open chimney flue is a direct shot for cold air to make its way into the home. Since cold air falls, it can literally act as a funnel for all the warm air in your home to float out and be replaced by the colder air. This makes it that much harder to warm your home, so keep it closed when possible

#10: Replace Fireplace with Wood Stove

Traditional fireplaces lose the majority of their heat out the chimney rather than heating the room. A wood burning stove can both work more efficiently to heat your home, as well as cut down on energy costs.

So that’s it for now, I hope these tips will help you warm your home and stave off the cold this winter. Hopefully it can save you some money as well.

If you found this kind of content helpful, I also encourage you to check out my new project, the How to Home Podcast, which you can find on all major podcast platforms, and the condensed versions will be on my YouTube channel as well. There we talk about all kinds of topics related to home improvement and DIY projects, so I hope you’ll check it out!

And if you’d like to see some other tips, here are some other great lists I’ve made!

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Thank you guys so much, and I’ll see you next time!

I’ll be installing the Maximus Floodlight Camera  by Kuna in this tutorial. I prefer the look and functionality of the Maximus lights compared to other camera lights on the market. The one thing I would suggest when installing smarter home products is that you try to stick to one or a few specific brands so as to not inundate yourself with smart home apps.

Step #1: Removing the Existing Light

First, make sure the power to the breaker is shut off that powers the motion light you are working on.

Next, remove the screw holding the light to the junction box. You can now pull the light from the box to expose the wiring. I recommend using a voltage tester to make sure the power is off to the light before touching the wiring. If there is voltage present, the voltage tester will beep.

Now you can disconnect the wiring. You should see a black hot wire, a white neutral, and a green ground wire. Depending on how old you home is, the coloring could differ. Finally, unscrew the mounting bracket for the light from the box.

Step #2: Unpack the New Light

Now, unpack your new light from its box and look through your components. This light comes with a mounting bracket, a mounting plate, the lamp head, and hardware.

Detach the mounting plate from the head lamp on the new light by releasing the locking switch on the mounting plate.

Step #3: Attach the Mounting Bracket and Wiring

To begin installing the new light, screw in the new mounting bracket to the junction box.

With the mounting bracket fastened, secure the wiring from the mounting plate to the wires in the junction box using the included wire nuts. Make sure to connect them black to black, white to white.For this light, there is no visible ground wire. The ground screw mounts through the center of the mounting plate and grounds the fixture to the grounded box.

Step #4: Fasten the Mounting Plate and Head Lamp

Next mount the mounting plate to the mounting bracket with the screw in the center paying close attention to the area marker “up” on the mounting plate. In this case I’m mounting the light under an eave so “up” faces out towards me.

Once the plate is installed, attach the lamp head to the plate my inserting the metal nubs into the slots and turning the lamp. And then lock the locking switch.

Finally, turn the breaker power back on at the breaker.

Step #5: Connect and Customize Your Light

From here, download the Kuna app for your light and connect it to your wifi account. You can add a bunch of different cameras, adjust the sensitivity of the motion detector, adjust the brightness of the light and when it turns on and off. You can even add or adjust the sound that plays when motion is detected.

The footage automatically records to your phone when it detects motion and alerts you with a notification if you want it to.

Being able to monitor your home from anywhere really gives you a lot of peace of mind. Adding a little security that you can monitor from your phone has never been easier or more affordable.

If you liked this project, check out some of these other smart home improvement projects:

Installing a Keyless Entry Lock System

Installing a Smart Thermostat

I hope you enjoyed this, and I hope you learned something new! If you did like this guide or find it helpful, feel free to subscribe to my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/mrfixit.