Summertime is when many Cincinnati families choose to head out on a vacation together. Planning your trip and getting your car ready may be the first thing you think about as you prepare; however, there are also several home maintenance tasks you can carry out that will save you a great deal on your home cooling bill while you are away.

Here's where to focus your home maintenance tasks:

• Lighting -- Turn off all unnecessary lights in your home. If you have security lights, add a timer to control them so they will automatically turn off when they are not needed.
• Air conditioning -- Unless you have heat-sensitive plants, an aquarium or pets in your home, you can simply turn your air conditioner off entirely while you are gone. On the other hand, just adjusting the thermostat a few degrees upward can also save you a great deal.
• Refrigerators -- If you are going to be gone for a long time, it might be the perfect time to clean out your refrigerator. Much of what is inside of it will probably expire by the time you get back anyway. Once you have done this, leave the refrigerator unplugged to ensure energy savings.
• Water heater -- When you won't be at home for an extended period of time, you won't need hot water. Turn off the system at the fuse box, but be sure that there is water in the tank before restarting it upon your return.
• Waterbed -- Surprisingly, waterbeds actually consume a great deal of energy. Most have built-in heaters to keep the water inside the bed warm, so unplug it before you head out of town.
• Gadgets -- Many of the gadgets and other electrical devices you have around your home use electricity even when they are not actually in operation. Leave all of these devices unplugged while you are gone.

These basic home maintenance tips can yield significant savings while you are away on your trip. For any further information about this topic, please contact Tri-County Heating & Cooling. We serve Butler County and the Greater Cincinnati area, and our experienced staff will be more than happy to help you.