With the increasing costs of fuels and everything else, people need to find ways to lower the monthly bills, including the electric bill. This is one bill that you may have some control over, depending on your usage. There are actually quite a few things all household members can do to lower your electric bills. Part of it is rethinking how you do things. Some of it involves remaining diligent and focused on the goal of a lowered electric bill. Part is training everyone in the house to follow suit. The added bonus is these efforts will help the environment too.
Instructions
Lower Electric Bills
1. Make sure to raise your thermostat in the summer and lower it in the winter. Even better; if you can turn it off altogether, at least part of the time, you will save even more.
2. Make sure everyone in the house turns off lights when they leave a room. Opt for lower energy burning light bulbs throughout your home.
3. Turn off unnecessary things like the coffee maker when it is not in use or the printer when you don’t use it often. Those tiny lights on each item add up to wasted energy over a period of time.
4. Try doing things you normally do in the light in the dark, like going to the bathroom in the middle of the night or taking a shower or bath. The shower or bath are actually quite relaxing in the dark.
5. Use the dishwasher and other kitchen appliances sparingly. If you insist on using a dishwasher, just run it for the wash and rinse cycles, then open it and turn off the dry cycle. Leave the door of the dishwasher open and let the dishes air dry.
6. Try using the microwave for cooking some of your hot meals instead of the stove or oven. In the summer try making more meals that involve the use of fresh grown produce eaten without cooking, like salads or fresh cut veggies with dips.
7. Try hanging high temperature drying items like towels out on a clothes line to dry instead of running the dryer for those.
8. Keep doors closed between rooms. The heat or air conditioning will stay in the room better. Make sure you close outside doors quickly to keep the heat or cool from escaping.
9. Get new multi-pane windows installed or if you can’t afford that, recaulk old windows that feel drafty.
10. Find alternate ways to keep cool in the heat besides running the air conditioner all the time. Get a floor or oscillating fan instead or use an overhead fan. Drink lots of cold fluids and do your most energetic home jobs in the cooler parts of the day.
11. Run the washer and dryer at off peak hours.
12. Install an attic fan that can be turned on when the temperatures are excessively hot inside and beginning to cool off outside. The attic fan will suck in the cool air from the windows, vent out the hot air and ventilate the house quickly so you don’t have to run the air conditioner to get it cool when you get home from work. It only has to run a short while to be effective.
13. Use a wind up clock or your cell phone alarm instead of an electric alarm clock.
14. Set your computer to go on low power mode if you walk away for awhile or turn it off altogether if you aren’t going to use it for awhile.
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