As small business owners, we often look for ways to save money on our electricity bills. However, since utility bills are a business expense that all business owners have to deal with in the long run, the problem becomes tenfold when you own a commercial building. According to Energy star, small businesses in the United States collectively spend 60 billion dollars on their energy bills. So understandably, many business owners are searching for ways to lower their bills.
So, to help them along, here are three ways to make your commercial business more energy-efficient:
Repairing and replacements
Broken equipment, poorly installed windows, and inefficient roofing could all contribute to a waste of energy. Your business loses around 25% of its heat through the roof and windows. If you’re heating your building during the winter, all of that heating is lost due to poor insulation. In addition to this, insulation could cost further issues, such as draft, that helps in moisture, leading to mold. This can harm your employees. Ensuring that you have proper insulation is one way of making sure that you combat mildew, losing heat and save money on your energy bills. Insulating your windows and roof can help to combat this problem. Window replacement is often the go-to for most businesses, but others choose to get in touch with tpo roof installers and tackle the issue that way, while others prefer to do both.
You can also ensure that any equipment you use is inspected regularly and repaired when needed to prevent energy waste while you work. In fact, some businesses will use timers to ensure that equipment is turned off once it becomes inactive, removing any chance of equipment being left on and wasting energy.
Get Energy Management Systems
In recent years, businesses have been turning to energy management systems to help bring their energy usage down to a more manageable level. An energy management system is a tool used to manage usage within businesses or homes. Companies use it to reduce their energy consumption. By having automatic management systems, business owners can limit their use and track their usage. A few examples of energy management systems are automatic lights that turn off when you leave the room—self-regulating temperature gauges, and timers that turn off equipment if left inactive for long periods of time.
Energy management systems also give you the added benefit of monitoring your energy use, making it easy to keep track when you’re looking for parts of your business that require improvement or reductions.
Do an Energy Audit
An energy audit is an assessment that allows you to see your overall energy use and where you can make further improvements. These assessments often look from the outside in, taking into account different points to discover where you are losing the most energy. This could be looking at insulation for your walls, roof, and windows. It could look at your equipment, monitor the habits of your employees and a host of other factors that could help your business save money and become more energy efficient.
If you’re interested in learning more about energy efficiency for your business, you can get in touch with your energy provider or speak with companies that offer energy management services.
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