“What are the most effective, easiest, and cheapest ways to reduce your energy bills?”
Many individuals are searching for various means of reducing their energy bills, and the answer it quite simple if you take the time to sit and think about it for a little while.
The most effective, easiest and cheapest ways to reduce your energy bills is to pay attention to the energy that you use.
Look around your home and property. Consider the various things you use that require electricity.
While tending your lawn, use a good old-fashioned rake and your own personal energy to get rid of leaves and debris rather than plugging in your electric leaf blower or even your gas-powered leaf blower. Save that money for something else. If good old papa and granddad were not to good to use a rake, you certainly are not.
Next, consider the lights that you may switch on and then leave on, whether you are outside or inside. If no one is in the room or area using them, what purpose do they serve other than for you to have to pay more on your monthly power bill? Turn them off!
Any time anyone is not using the lights and the lights are on, those lights are adding to your monthly expense. Make sure that if no one is using them, to turn them off. Insist that everyone in the house turn off the lights when they are not actually in the room or area using them. If it helps, make some small signs and place them near the light switches to remind anyone and everyone who uses them to turn off the lights. It isn’t so hard to get children to do this as well, if you explain to them that while the lights are burning it uses up money that may be spent as Christmas or birthday money. Kids can understand this type of thinking; try it and see.
Use ceiling fans or other types of fans for cooling and circulating the air inside your home. Open the windows and let some good fresh air inside. While the sun is up high, consider closing the curtains to keep the heat out or even the cool in.
When you are using central air and heat, take care not to cool or heat the great outdoors. Always close the doors upon entering and exiting. Leaving the doors or windows open when you are using central air and heat only drains the temperature you have set, which means that your unit will have to work that much harder to keep the temperature at the level you have set it. For your heating and cooling unit to work double time, guess what? Yes, it sucks more energy! Set your thermostats at 78 degrees and leave it there, unless of course you are not going to be at home and then you should consider setting the thermostat at about 85 degrees and when you return you can bump it up a bit as needed. This will help you save energy and money each month.
Do not waste water! When you waste water you waste an essential earthly resource and you also waste money. Turn off any water that is not necessary; there is no need to overfill a tub or allow a leaky toilet to persist. Do what you need to do to cut down on your consumption of water and energy. Take a shower or put some of the smaller children in a tub together or one right after the other.
This is not shameful, heck I remember bathing in a cast iron tub with a water hose for water, out on the front porch of my grandparents house, we all wore our underwear when we had to bathe together and small children only know they are getting wet and clean at the same time. The girls would get in first, since most often we were never as dirty as the boys and then the boys would get in the tub when we got out. Our parents got ten children clean without wasting water every evening, it never killed any of us or put us into any type of contamination situations. Hey, in the summertime, grab the Ivory and towels and head for the creek, that works too!
Couples can even consider showering together, this will save water and energy while even perhaps even bring that couple closer together.
If you feel the need to grab up your water hose to clean the carport, patio, deck or your driveway, consider using a broom instead. It may use a bit of elbow grease, however, it will not use electricity or water to keep such areas dirt free and looking their best.
Washing the laundry or dishes in a dishwasher: anytime you use the washer or the dishwasher you should do so while it is full rather than washing less than a full load. You can wash out all those pretty delicates by hand and then let them air dry if you need them sooner than to wait to wash a whole load of laundry and to be quite honest, it is a bit daft to wash only a partial load of dishes in the dishwasher. If you need them before the dishwasher is full enough to wash a whole load, wash what you need and then put it in the dishwasher. You can open the dishwasher and allow your dishes to air dry rather than finishing up with the heating element drying them for you. We do this all the time, it only takes a little while for them to dry this way and it does save energy and money. While washing clothes in the washer consider using only cold water, they will get clean and this will cut down on your energy consumption as well. We do this all the time too.
Turn your computer off when not in use as well any thing else you may be using, when you finish using it. You should consider unplugging your power strips as well. Remember, if you are not using it, it should not be on or even plugged in to an outlet, if you really want to and are serious about reducing your energy bills.
* Keep in mind these are only a few things to consider while trying to save energy and money. Survey your own home and property to find other things you may need to do in order to reduce your energy bills. If you do, you will most definitely be able to see the difference while paying the next utility bill.
© 2009 Sara Valor
