If you’re among the 45 million households in America that rent their home, the prospect of making your apartment or house more energy efficient can feel out of reach. If a landlord hasn’t made the changes, why would a renter spend their own money to upgrade a space that isn’t theirs—or, worse, risk messing up their lease?
But there are several small, affordable, and energy-efficient upgrades renters can make that aid the environment and save some cash. “The changes that you make can improve your comfort and reduce your bills,” says Amy Royden-Bloom, manager of the Residential Buildings Program at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. “So it’s not just energy savings but making where you live more comfortable.”
From low-cost updates to simple maintenance tasks, here are nine upgrades that can make a rental home a more energy efficient place.
1. Check your HVAC filters
Home heating and cooling systems require a lot of power, accounting for 43% of the average utility bill. Any issues or inefficiencies can lead to discomfort and greater cost. A grimy air conditioning filter has to work much harder, increasing energy consumption by as much as 15%, according to the Department of Energy (DOE), and can also make the air inside a home dirtier. Replacing the filters on a regular schedule is one of the simplest ways to ensure an HVAC system is operating efficiently. “You want to inspect your filters as least once a month,” says Royden-Bloom. If the filter looks dirty, change it. At a minimum, she says to change the filter every three months to make sure the HVAC is working and that the air pumping through the house is clean.
2. Install some cellular blinds
According to the DOE, about 30% of a home’s heating energy is lost through windows. During warmer months, 76% of the sunlight that hits typical double pane windows becomes heat inside the home. To state the obvious, you need window coverings to keep your home regulated and lessen the stress on your HVAC.
The DOE has a list of recommended treatments for the job, the first of which is cellular shades. They not only provide the privacy and light-filtering one needs from a covering, but their honeycomb structure acts as an insulator, reducing heat loss, minimizing cold drafts near windows, and lowering unwanted solar heat gain. A 2020 study conducted by the DOE found the shades save up to 20% on heating energy and up to 15% on total energy compared to a scenario without any shades.1
If the idea of purchasing new shades for a rented space makes you cringe, Royden-Bloom notes that some brands may be eligible for the enhanced energy efficiency tax credit, which offers up to $1,200 per year for energy property costs and certain energy efficient home improvements. Plus, you can always take the shades with you when you move out.
3. Mind those gaps
A well-sealed home is a more efficient home. Drafts waste energy and raise your electricity bill. In fact, the EPA estimates a home can save an average of 15% on heating and cooling costs by air sealing doors and insulating the attic, floors, and basements.2
Though many air-sealing projects require a contractor—which really makes them the landlord’s problem—Royden-Bloom recommends renters caulk around windows as well as installing weather stripping and draft stoppers around doors to seal gaps. Professionals examine the seals around windows and doors using what’s known as a blower test, which involves using an industrial fan to test for any air leakage. But renters can simply place their hand in front of any windows or doors and feel for the flow of hot or cold air.
4. Replace incandescent bulbs with LEDs
Incandescent bulbs are wildly inefficient—especially compared to modern LEDs. The main problem is that they produce more heat than light. “A lot of the energy with incandescents is lost to heating, so you’re creating another heating source in your house with incandescent bulbs and that can hurt in the summer,” says Royden-Bloom. Only 10% of the electricity used by an incandescent bulb is used for lighting; the remaining 90% is released as heat.3
Chances are high that you don’t have any of these power-hungry bulbs in your home at this point: A ban on their sale and manufacturing was announced by the Biden administration and went into effect in August 2023. But it’s good to make sure and to swap out any you find for LED bulbs, which use 90% less energy and are 25 times as efficient as standard LEDs. Making the swap to LED bulbs saves homeowners $225 a year.4
5. Use your thermostat’s brains
When used correctly, Wi-Fi connected smart thermostats can shave as much as 8% off annual heating and cooling bills.5 Those with the Energy Star label, in particular, have passed independent and in-home testing to prove that they deliver energy savings. In general, because they learn your heating and cooling patterns and are smart enough to, among other things, change to a more efficient temperature when you’re not home during the day, often operate more effectively than other models. Learning how to operate it right—or, if you don’t have one, asking a landlord to install one—is a simple step towards a more efficient home and a lower utility bill.
6. Kill energy vampires with smart power strips
Many plugged-in devices hoover up electrons when not in use. The cable box, says Royden-Bloom, is a common example, but certain TVs, coffee machines, phone and laptop chargers, and video game consoles fall into the category as well. Colloquially called “energy vampires” because they suck up electricity when they’re not in use, such devices, per the Natural Resources Defense Council, may be responsible for as much as 20% of a home’s energy consumption.6 A good way to check if a device is one, per Royden-Bloom, is to lay your hand on it. If it’s warm when not in use, that’s a surefire sign.
To put a stake through these energy vampires, the NRDC recommends several steps: purchasing Energy Star certified products, utilizing power-saving settings on certain electronics, and plugging devices into timers and power strips. For the latter, remember that the strip’s switch needs to be turned off to stop the drain.
7. Clean your fridge’s coils…
A condenser coil, which is most often located in the back of your fridge, is responsible for releasing generated heat and regulating the inside temperature. But the outward-facing network of tubes tends to accumulate a good amount of dust. When too much covers it, this gunk barrier can make it more difficult to dissipate heat, causing the fridge to work harder. Cleaning the condenser coils every few months with a Swiffer-style wand and dust pad is recommended to ensure a fridge is operating more efficiently—and lasts longer.
8. …and your dryer vent
If there’s a dryer in your rental, this should be something you do every year regardless of your quest for energy efficiency, as lint build-up is a fire hazard. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) notes that washing machines and dryers result in 15,970 fires each year, with 92% of those caused by dryers.7 A lint-clogged dryer vent also leads to a much more inefficient machine, as it needs to work harder to circulate the necessary hot air. The NFPA says to clean lint from the trap after every load and clear out the vent pipe once a year.
9. Maintain the right appliance temps
Keeping appliances at recommended settings improves their efficiency and longevity. According to Royden-Bloom, this is especially important for water heaters and refrigerators. The DOE notes that most water heaters should be set to 120 degrees Fahrenheit, to provide adequate heat and slow the build-up of minerals (doing so can shave up to $400 annually on a utility bill as well). As for the fridge, it should be set between 35 and 38 degrees Fahrenheit, with optimal performance right around 37. A freezer should be set to 0. And remember: a fuller fridge is a more efficient fridge.
How to talk to your landlord about making energy efficient upgrades
Buying a few power strips, some cellular shades, and a tube of caulk is one thing. But larger updates should go through the landlord. For one thing, it’s not really a renter’s responsibility to address larger issues—or, some might argue, change the AC filter. For another, you may be in breach of lease if you make significant upgrades. So, how do you approach a landlord or management company about larger changes? Just ask them, urges Royden-Bloom.
“One thing to recognize about energy efficiency upgrades is that there may be owners who are willing to do them but just don’t want to disturb their tenants,” she says. Her recommendation: Tell your landlord you’re interested in more insulation because you know there’s a leakage and that you’re fine with workers coming in to do the job. It may be as simple as that. Another tactic is to make the monetary case.“You can make the case that this makes it more appealing to future tenants if they know that their bills won’t be so high,” Royden-Bloom suggests.
In fact, a 2022 study of 2,455 renters conducted by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, found that renters would be more likely to rent a home with high energy-efficiency ratings or low-energy costs.8 As of right now, only certain cities must disclose such information. But savings is savings and a little money now can save a lot in the long run. That’s a compelling case for everyone involved.
- Interior Cellular Shades Boost Home Energy Performance, U.S. Department of Energy, Oct. 2021 ↩︎
- Methodology for Estimated Energy Savings, Energy Star ↩︎
- LED Lighting, Energy Saver ↩︎
- Lighting Choices to Save You Money, Energy Saver ↩︎
- ENERGY STAR Smart Thermostats FAQs for EEPS, Energy Star ↩︎
- Energy Vampires: Keep Your Devices from Wasting Energy and Money, NRDC, May 2022 ↩︎
- Home Fires Involving Clothes Dryers and Washing Machines, NFPA, Mar. 2017 ↩︎
- Energy Labels Affect Behavior on Rental Listing Websites: A Controlled Experiment, ACEEE, May 2022 ↩︎