TULSA, Okla. — Colder weather and darker days mean the heater is working full-time during the winter. But there are ways to heat a home that also shrink those energy bills.
A big thing people can do on a regular basis to save energy in their homes, in terms of their HVAC system, is to change their air filter.
That's according to Cassie Pound, the vice president and co-owner of Quality Heating, Cooling & Plumbing, a Tulsa-area company. She told 2 News a dirty filter can overwork the system.
A way to combat that is using another heat source.
"A lot of people forget about our sun being nature's heat," Pound noted. "And open your blinds, open your curtains, and let that sun come in during the day, creating some heat inside your space. And that's going to not use your HVAC system quite as often."
She said another big energy-waster is people leaving the heat on high when they leave their home for work or vacation. One solution is using a smart or programmable thermostat.
"When you're not home or you're at work," Pound said to set your temperature down, "so it's not heating your house when you're not there."
"Obviously, if you have animals or things at home that you want to make sure are taken care of properly, do that," she continued. "But you don't need to have your home as hot as you would have it or prefer it to be when you're not there."
Your HVAC and heating systems help protect your home from the cold. Pound told us there are ways to protect yourself from hazards they can pose.
"A lot of people don't realize there's ... a fire inside of here [an HVAC unit]," she pointed out, "and so you wanna make sure that you're having that checked and you're having it tuned up regularly."
"You call your local heat and air company, call whoever you work with, call us," Pound added, "let us come out and make sure that everything inside is working the way that it should be."
Something she said people often overlook during the winter is carbon monoxide. The HVAC system, water heater, and the range inside a home can pump that silent killer into the air.
Therefore, Pound emphasized making sure that people have working carbon monoxide detectors and that all those systems and detectors are maintained on a regular basis.
"That's not to scare anyone either," she asserted. "There's tons of safeties inside of this unit to make sure that your unit is safe for your home."
Just as people have their cars serviced and their oil changed, she added that they should do the same thing with their HVAC systems to ensure that everything is working safely and smoothly.
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