Summer energy costs are on the rise

The Department of Energy estimates that homes use almost a quarter of all the country's energy. The average American family spends approximately $2,200 on utility bills a year, nearly half of which is spent on heating and cooling.

Along with the sweltering heat comes increased energy usage - and prices.

Air conditioning might save us from melting into a puddle, but all that sweet AC and time inside causes our electric meters to spin out of control, resulting in sky-high energy bills that can make budgeting a nightmare.

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The 3 best ways to stabilize your home energy costs

There are easy ways to save on energy costs and reduce fuel use without sacrificing comfort.

1. Up your insulation game

Insulating your walls, ceilings, floors and windows goes a long way in ensuring your home stays cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

While cheap roll or "batt" insulation can be found in most hardware stores for under a dollar per square foot, we always recommend eco-friendly insulation alternatives such as stone mineral wool (Roxul) which not only outperforms typical foam insulation, but also repels termites and helps slow the spread of fire.

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2. Switch to a smart thermostat

Yes, they look cool but did you know smart thermostats are actually made to save energy, helping to reduce and stabilize your energy bills in the process?

Smart scheduling allows you to heat and cool your home with an incredible level of control, even reducing heating/cooling while you're out and getting it comfortable for you while on your way home.

In addition to making you feel like the Jetsons, you'll be reducing your greenhouse gas emissions while saving money, especially during the summer months.

We recommend the Google Nest thermostat, which is currently on-sale at Amazon.

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3. Get off the Grid

The most sure-fire way to avoid those infamous summer electricity spikes is to get off the grid completely.

Sure, you can build a microgrid at your home with solar panels, battery storage, generators and a smart controller but that sounds like a big complicated, expensive headache, right?

While off-grid energy might have been impossible for most homeowners in the past, services like OhmGrid are making it accessible for the average home by bundling the equipment, installation, maintenance, monitoring and service into one subscription that completely replaces your utility connection.

Most who switch pay the same or even less than their average electricity bill, and since off-grid energy doesn't change like the energy markets, billing stays flat forever so you always know exactly how much you'll be paying.

We encourage all homeowners looking to go off-grid complete the OhmGrid home screening to see if your home is eligible.

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To sum it all up...

Energy prices rise in the summer

We use a ton of energy to cool our homes

rising prices + more energy used = monster energy bills

To reduce your energy usage, improve the insulate your home using eco-friendly materials like Roxul and get your home temperature under control with a smart thermostat.

The only way to truly avoid these sweaty situations is to get off the grid completely by generating all of your home power locally using a whole-home power system.

OhmGrid is a service that makes independently powering your home simple and worry-free.