Conduct an energy audit of your home to keep heating costs down

Thursday, January 11th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

With gas bills on the rise, many Oklahomans want to know if their home is energy efficient. The average customer will pay about 70 percent more on their natural gas bill this month. Gas companies recommend a home energy check to see if you could save on next month's bill.

At Home Depot, people are coming in to see what they can do to make their homes more energy efficient, such as adding more insulation. The News on Six went along with the gas company to see what they recommend.

Grace Plummer paid $193.80 on her gas bill this month. â€œI haven't burned my gas fireplac,e and this may be silly, but I've been putting towels down under my door and little things that I think help it," she said. Roger Mitchell with the Oklahoma Natural Gas Company says that's not at silly at all. He says there are simple ways to ensure your home would pass an energy audit.

Start outside at the heating unit by cleaning your filters. â€œIf it's dirty, it impedes the air flow,â€ Mitchell explained. â€œIt makes your system work harder which means you're going to use more fuel."

Windows and doors are other places that can let in cold air. â€œLook very closely at caulking and weather striping around doors," Mitchell advises.

Inside the house, there are plenty of things that can be done to cut energy costs, including watching the thermostat. â€œA lot of the customers tend to run their systems anywhere from 70 -75 degrees,â€ Mitchell explained. â€œWe would recommend you try to go below 70 to 68 degrees."

Another key is insulation. Many companies are weeks behind on installing it, because of an influx of calls. â€œWe have doubled from 8 jobs a day,â€ explained C & S Insulation spokesperson Charlie Moore. â€œWe've went to probably 15 to 26 jobs a day.â€ Moore says he tells people that if they have more than 12 inches of insulation, they're ok, if not to talk to an insulation company. â€œTo get the pay back in time with the gas bill as high as they are, you're looking at probably five months, and it will pay itself off."