A tenant sought advice on Reddit after discovering that windows with broken seals in their apartment were likely causing high indoor temperatures and a high energy bill.
"Most of our windows are like this, where the seals are broken. Our first electric bill was almost $300 unbeknownst to us and our power company believes that the improper seals on the windows may be causing our AC to not be working as efficient," they wrote in a post to r/LandlordLove, a subreddit about problems caused by landlords. "How should I approach this? This is my first apartment."
"Take many pictures and if you got that response from the power company pointing to the broken window seals being the cause of your bill being so high in some written way like an email, then include that too and send it all to your landlord or put in a maintenance request if it's a management company," suggested one commenter. "That would be my first course of action, tbh. That way nobody can say they weren't made aware of the issue!"
Hopefully, the original poster's landlord will be receptive and fix the problem. Weatherizing your home by taking actions such as installing new windows is one of the best ways to keep heating and cooling costs low.
If the landlord agrees to repair or replace the windows, it could save the tenant up to $300 a year. As the property owner, the landlord could also qualify for major tax rebates under the Inflation Reduction Act. But the landlord should act quickly, as these rebates will likely disappear soon.
Making sure your home and appliances are efficient saves you money and benefits the planet by reducing the amount of pollution created to power, heat, and cool your home. Replacing drafty windows is a simple way to keep the tenant's bill low and planet-warming pollution out of the air.
The renter may not find it that easy, as landlords across the country have been known to prevent renters from adopting money-saving, eco-friendly lifestyle changes, including gardening and hanging clotheslines to dry their laundry.
The commenter gave good advice: keep good records. There are also ways to work with difficult landlords or homeowners associations to enact change and get eco-friendly improvements made to properties.
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