Keep your hot water tank in good condition and running most efficiently by draining the sludge from the bottom. The more sludge bild up you have in the bottom of your hot water tank the more energy your wasting. Essentially you wind up with less hot water upon demand and your paying to heat sludge 24/7 that your not going to use. So here is a simple how to for the DIY person to improve your hot water heaters efficiency and make yourself feel better about a clean hot water tank.

First take a good look at your hot water heater to make sure it has a drain at the bottom. Most of them are plastic and can be very problematic if you try to turn them. Your best bet is to have a new valve on hand or just plan to replace it with a brass fixture. Make sure you know where the water shut off is for the Hot water tank. Depending on how hot the water is, you might want to wear gloves and safety glasses as well.

Electrical Outlets and Switches provide a convenient way to control the power in our homes. They allow us to plug in anywhere and control lighting making our lives more comfortable and safe. The reaction to this action however, is a hole in the thermal envelope or wall to the outside.

Is your living room sitting on top of a refrigerator? If your basement walls are bare with no insulation, that might just be the case. And if your HVAC ducts run through the basement, then your getting a cold blast every time the heat kicks on. Most people don't realize their basement can have a great impact on their heating system.

Heat loss from an uninsulated basement can account for up to one third of the heating cost in an average home. This varies depending on many factors, such as the air tightness of the building envelope, the amount of insulation in the house and the height of the above grade portion of the basement wall. Since the above grade portion of the basement wall is exposed to colder temperatures than the below grade portion of the wall it loses heat at a much greater rate than the below grade portion of the wall.

If you are buying or building a new house or remodeling existing, make sure that energy savings features are included to make the most of your efficiency. The benefits of a tight fully insullated home are improved comfort, energy savings and carbon footprint reduction. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) home insulation rule requires the seller of a new home to provide information on the type, thickness, and R-value of the insulation that will be installed in each part of the house in every sales contract. Many state or local building codes include minimum requirements for home insulation. Be sure that your new home or home addition meets these building codes. You should seriously think about installing insulation beyond the minimum specified in such codes, especially if those minimum levels are below those recommended here.