Save money by conserving energy. Sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it? The amount of money lost in paying utility bills can be salvaged by doing a few inexpensive, simple steps.
The typical American family spends at least $2,200 a year on home utility bills. This amount can be lowered about 25 percent by using some proven recommendations.
Here’s a list of a few easy and inexpensive ways to conserve energy and save money.
Ways to Save Money While Conserving Energy
- Turn off the television when going to sleep. Televisions drain electricity and increase energy costs and bills, substantially.
- Install window shades. Heat comes through windows of nearly 80 percent of homes. To help cool down a home, install window shades to block the light and heat from entering the house.
- Use a programmable thermostat. A programmable thermostat can save as much as 10 percent on cooling and heating by turning the temperature back 7° to 10°F for eight hours a day from its normal setting. This can be done automatically by using a programmable thermostat and scheduling the times heating or air conditioning is usually turned on. By lowering a thermostat, just one degree can save as much as 10 percent of a heating bill.
- Don’t keep appliances plugged in. It’s important to identify and eliminate energy vampires – devices that use electricity even when they’re turned off and account for 20 percent of an electric bill. This is unlikely to work for some appliances, like a clock radio or cable box. But an extra television, phone chargers, an old desktop computer or a stereo that isn’t often used, should be unplugged until the next time they are used.
- Change air filters, regularly.
- Turn off lights when leaving a room.
- Wash only full loads of clothes and dishes.
- Air dry clothes
- Air-dry dishes rather than using the dishwasher drying cycle.
- Pay bills online. This might seem somewhat trite – but paying bills online saves the costs of stamps. The likelihood of the bill being paid on time is greater. Utility and cable companies set up automatic deductions to pay bills, which makes bill paying a little easier, saves time and money.
- Install a faucet aerator on each faucet. Faucet aerators are inexpensive. They conserve heat and water, while helping to keep water pressure high.
- Install a low-flow showerhead. Installing an inexpensive, low-flow showerhead saves energy and water, as well.
- Take shorter showers. The average American uses 25,300 gallons of water a year. That adds up to approximately 69 gallons daily. An average shower uses about 5 gallons of water per minute. Shortening a shower by 2 minutes can cut water use by 10 gallons. By turning the water off while soaping, a person can reduce water consumption even further. Reducing hot water use helps to conserve energy and save money.
- Lower the water heater thermostat to 120°F.
- You can further reduce your water consumption by using Energy Star®-rated light bulbs and appliances. These light bulbs and appliances are proven to use significantly less energy than those that are not Energy Star®-rated. For instance, an Energy Star®-rated light bulb uses 70 to 90 percent less energy than an incandescent bulb. They also last 10 to 25 time longer and saves $30 to $80 dollars on energy bills. In fact, LED bulbs last nearly 50 years.
Here’s a short video on how to save money with light bulbs
Energy — More Precious Than Gold!
Some people don’t take energy for granted. No matter what form of energy – either gas, or electric — energy helps supply fortunate people the necessities of life. Energy offers people and pets the opportunity to enjoy the comforts of cool air, or heat, clean water, safe and fresh food. Energy provides us the means to communicate with others, to travel, to visit family, and to be entertained, to name a few.
Surveying our homes and offices for better ways to conserve energy, and investing in energy-saving products helps us save money, in the long run.