New Year's Resolutions for Your Home.
It's the middle of January and have you broken your New Year's Resolution, I have! I'm not telling what it was, but I think I broke it by January 3 :( but I do have over 340 days to improve :)
So instead of resolutions about improving ourselves, how about some on how to save money with our homes.
Changing those incandescent light bulbs to LED bulbs. LED bulbs will save you approximately $150 on your electric bill over the lifespan of one bulb. Look around your home, how many light bulbs do you need to light your home and start adding the savings.
That annoying drip, drip, drip at night is costing you money. 
A drop of water falling at the rate of one per second equals 8 gallons a day of water. Check your water bill and see if taking the time to fix or replace the faucet will save you enough money to pay for the repair.
The air filters, the most forgotten fix in your home?. Did you know putting in the wrong size is just as bad as not changing them? Not replacing timely or putting in the wrong size filter will increase your power bill and cause problems to your HVAC or Furnace in time.
And while we are on your heating/cooling unit, another great way to save money is buying a programmable thermostat. Set it to not run either by lowering or raising the temperature for the time of year while you are away from home. Also check to make sure that your air vents are flowing correctly. Adjust them to direct the flow better throughout your home. This will help save on your energy costs as well.
Other energy eaters in your home include leaky windows and doors. Those cold winter winds can enter your home through small openings. Save yourself some money and add some comfort to your home, by caulking around the windows and putting rubber seals around the doors.
Another energy eater in the home is the monster in the closet (water heater). If you don't have a tankless water heater, the water heater is working 24/7. Think about decreasing the tank temperature in the summer when you don't need that really amazing hot shower.
One way to save money outside your home is not over watering your lawn. Be sure and check your sprinklers at least once a year to make sure that they are not over watering one area, while under watering another. Check regularly for broken sprinkler heads and that they are pointed in the right direction to water the lawn and not the sidewalk or driveway.
Just like the back of your head doesn't always get your attention, the same is for your roof. Really who looks up to check to make sure everything is OK up there! Take some time to check out the roof to see if you see any issues: curled shingles, missing or loose one.
Last but not least, the best way to save money is fix the simple things yourself. There are some amazing videos on YouTube on how to repair simple items around your home. It is probably best to call a professional for electrical work or plumbing that is more then a stopped up sink, toilet or leak.
Happy New Year!
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