Compass Properties - Saving Money on Heat Bills

HEATING TIPS TO SAVE ENERGY & MONEY ON HEATING BILLS
Tips for you to consider to help reduce your electric and gas consumption.

Keep registers open and clear of debris.
Open blinds and other window treatments on your west and south-facing windows during the day to allow sunlight to naturally heat your home; close them at night.
Keep exterior doors closed. Don’t leave the front door open with only the storm door closed. Ensure your storm door closes securely.
Take window A/C units out of the windows. Keep windows closed. Often, in winter months, someone will leave their bedroom window open at times due to smoking or as they are warmer than other tenants. This will allow a large percentage of heat to escape.
Set your thermostat as low as is reasonably comfortable. For every degree you lower your thermostat, you can save approximately 3 percent on your heating bill. Remember the OSU campus houses are large; larger in square footage than most family homes due to the number of bedrooms and actual living space. Energy savings actions however will help lower your heat bills.
Always dry a full load of clothes and clear the lint trap/screen on dryers after each load. Consider hanging clothes to dry.
Ensure that all baseboard heaters and steam heaters have nothing on them and have nothing within 16-18”. This includes furniture, clothing, etc.
Although it is not necessary you may opt to use an additional space heater in the home to supplement the furnace. For your safety please ensure these have auto shut-off mechanisms, and anti-tip shut off safety features. These types of heaters should never be left on unattended! Please follow the product safety instructions so there is no fire hazard. Also be sure not to over-load electrical outlets as these heaters utilize a high wattage.
Often tenants elect to use an extra barrier over a window, although this is not necessary as all homes have updated windows and/or storm windows, please ensure it does not damage the window, trim or walls as most tend to do.
For example if you elect to use a plastic to cover windows ensure it will come off without marking the window and trim. Remember that duct or other tapes or staples can not be used on windows/trim.
Remember per the Rental Agreement, never turn your thermostat below 65 degrees ! In addition to being unsafe as it may cause damage to the home, it is also not recommended as the furnace works much harder (using more energy than is saved) to reheat the home.
Take a couple of minutes as a group to decide what temperature you would like the home to be and *leave the thermostat set*. Often in campus homes not everyone agrees and so one person set it high, another turns it down, you wake from a warm sleep and believe the house is cool and turn it up, etc. This causes excess waste. Decide as a group if you want to be able to wear only shorts and summer shirts, etc. in the winter (problem in many homes) or if you want to dress for colder weather and lower costs.

You may notice that most COMPASS homes have energy saving features:

Furnaces are serviced and cleaned regularly to ensure they are operating efficiently.
Appliances are either newer ‘Energy Star’ or high Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) rated.
Hot water tank temperatures and gas pilot lights are set at an energy efficient level.

Finally, please note that as with all furnaces, when you first turn on your furnace it may have a smell as it is igniting/burning for the first time in many, many months. This is normal and will not (should not) continue. I highly recommend you turn your furnace on for at least 4 hours on a slightly cooler day and before it gets into the very low temps.

Hope you all have a wonderful Fall!!