Summer Energy and Money Saving Tips

I just wanted to take a moment of your time to thank you for subscribing to the Nortek Environmental, Inc. eNewsletter. We are constantly trying to think of ways in order to keep our customers as up to date as possible with special promotions and important news regarding your Indoor Air Quality. While trying to stay as up to date as possible with technology and Social Media (Nortek Environmental, Inc. has a main website, Facebook Fan Page and Twitter Account), we also keep our customers updated through mailings. At the beginning of every spring and fall, we send out a reminder to all past Nortek Environmental, Inc. Customers to schedule their Annual 22-Point Cleaning, Tune-Up and Inspection. We also send out a Quarterly Newsletter that includes helpful HVAC tips, along with Nortek Environmental, Inc.'s 30 Minute Recipe, Energy Saving Tips, Inspirational Quotes, and much more.

If you do not receive any mail items from Nortek Environmental, Inc., please feel free to contact the office at (630) 548-1500 or to email us at nortekhvac@sbcglobal.net to request to be added to our mailing list. Once again, thank you for choosing Nortek Environmental, Inc..

Dear Justin,

No matter where you are or what you are doing, you are constantly consuming energy. Have you ever stopped to think about what changes you can make to your every day life to lower your energy consumption? The truth is that there are several changes you can make around your home that will lower both your home's energy consumption and the amount you spend on your utility bills, especially when it comes to your home's Heating, Air Conditioning, and Indoor Air Quality Systems.

HVAC Energy Saving Tips

• Always make sure to change your furnace filters on a monthly basis. Picture your furnace filter as a piece of fine cloth over your mouth: the longer you wait to change that filter, the more particles you allow to build up on it, making it harder and harder for you to breathe. Your furnace will be doing extra work to function properly just because the filter is dirty.
• Maintaining your furnace and air conditioner on an annual basis is extremely important. Having a Nortek Environmental, Inc. Technician come out to perform a Certified 22-Point Cleaning, Tune-Up and Inspection allows a professional to inspect your unit and make sure each part is running as efficiently as possible. Our technicians will always notify you of a potential issue that could cost you big bucks to repair if gone unnoticed.
• Invest in a programmable thermostat. A programmable thermostat allows you to put your heating and cooling settings on a timer. Say nobody is going to be in the house between 9 AM and 4 PM every day during the week. You can set a programmable thermostat to raise the temperature in your home (during the warmer months, for example) around 9 AM and have the thermostat bring your home's temperature back down to your comfort level around 3:30 PM before everyone gets home. Why pay to heat or cool an unused home?
• Keep in mind that setting your Air Conditioner to cooler temperatures than normal doesn't make your home cool down faster, it just makes your Air Conditioner run longer.
• Trees are a great way to reduce your home's temperature through the use of shade. Planting your trees in a strategic way will allow the sun to cast shadows onto your home, which will result in a lower indoor temperature.
• Place your thermostat somewhere that it can stand alone (not right next to a wall hanging, television, piece of furniture, etc.) and away from anything that emits heat. This will give your thermostat an improper reading of your home's temperature.
• Be sure to like us on Facebook. We offer daily energy savings tips beyond what's mentioned in this newsletter that keep your utility bills as cost friendly as possible.

Other "Around the House" Tips

Aside from just your Heating, Air Conditioning and Indoor Air Quality Systems, you can make several other changes to your home, car and lifestyle that will allow you to reap the benefits of reduced energy consumption, such as the following:

• During the summer, drive with the windows down rather than using your car's air conditioner. Using your automobile's air conditioner constantly will consume more of your gas, causing more of those dreaded stops to the gas station.
• Always run a full load of dirty dishes in your dish washer. Just think, if you always run your dishwasher at 50-75% full, you're using up to double the amount of water you'd need if you ran a full load.
• Power down your computers instead of allowing them to go into sleep mode. An idle computer is wasting money and energy for every minute it's on while unused.
• Put your lights on a timer or install a light dimmer to consume less energy.
• Set your hot water heater's temperature settings down a few degrees. It's likely that changing the water a few degrees will go unnoticed and your water heater will require less energy to heat the water.
• Fix leaking faucets. While it may seem like a minimal amount of water, most leaky faucets drip more than a gallon of water a day. That's 365 gallons of water a year wasted.

Proper Furnace Filter Replacement

As discussed earlier, one of the easiest ways to lower your energy costs is to make sure to change your furnace filter on a monthly basis. We inserted a quick video which demonstrates how you can change your filter.

How To Replace a Furnace Filter

I'd like to take a moment to hope you were able to stay cool this past week and enjoy your weekend. According to weather.com, you can expect temperatures to stay within the 80's for the week in the Chicagoland area. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about how your Air Conditioner is running, never hesitate to call us at (630) 548-1500.

Sincerely,
Lisa Averill
President Nortek Environmental, Inc..