Cathedral ceilings provide a house a sense of space and expansiveness, but they also raise your electricity bill. Together with the beauty of a cathedral ceiling, you also confront heat, cooling and lighting all of that excess space. Since heat and heat already take a huge bite out of your monthly budget — about 54 percent of the monthly utility bill — coming up with ideas to save on your electricity bill can help. Even with a cathedral ceiling, you have ways to decrease your energy usage, cut your carbon footprint and also help you save money on your electricity expenses.
Insulating Blanket
When you include the right type of insulation to your cathedral ceiling, the insulation effectively keeps your home comfortable and your energy bills manageable. The manner in which the cathedral ceiling has been built determines the best insulation to employ, since not all cathedral ceilings have a roof cavity to hold batt insulation. In a ceiling without a roof cavity under the roof deck, add rigid polyurethane insulation between the rafters and overlay with wood boards, paneling or drywall. You may also include a membrane or foam core panel insulation atop the roof deck before inserting shingles in houses with cathedral ceilings. Select insulation with the greatest resistance to heat loss or thermal transfer. The greater the R-value, the more the insulation protects against heat reduction.
Super Fans
More than fashionable accessories, ceiling fans work hard all through the year. They circulate air and reduce heating and cooling, when utilizing the same quantity of power as a standard light bulb. The wind created by a ceiling fan can make a room feel 3 to 4 degrees cooler, so allowing you to turn down your air conditioner. Turn off the fan when people are not in the space, since the fan cools people and never the room. During winter months switch the management of the lover to induce that warmed air away from the ceiling and down to the room.
Heavenly Lights
Lighting consumes approximately 10 percent of a home’s energy prices. With incandescent bulbs, in addition, it adds heat to the mix, as only 10 to 15 percent of the bulb’s energy goes to lighting — the remainder is released as heat. Switch to compact fluorescent lights or light-emitting diode bulbs. Both of these energy-efficient technologies deliver energy prices down without inserting any additional heat. As an additional bonus, the two of these choices last longer than incandescent bulbs — costing much less overall — that implies that you spend less time balancing on a ladder to change them.
Trendy Colors
Rooms with cathedral ceilings also often feature large windows which makes temperature management that much more difficult. High performance, double-glazed windows produce an energy-efficient barrier that reduces heat gain and also lowers energy prices. Solar window screens and specialty films block damaging ultraviolet rays that can damage furniture and decor, and produce hot spots. If your windows face south, light from them can offer passive solar heat through the winter. In the summer, close blinds or drapes during daylight hours to keep the sun’s heat.