42 Tips to Save on Your Electricity Bill
With this poor economy, money is tight for everyone. So I figured I would give all my readers some information on how to cut costs and save on their electricity bill. I did a bunch of research and compiled a list of ways to save on your electricity bill. One of the sites I found said you could save over $2,000 dollars a year using their tips. I have included their tips along with many others. Enjoy.
Kitchen
1) Keep your refrigerator at 37°- 40° F and your freezer at 5°F.
2) Keep your refrigerator filled to capacity
3)Vacuum the condenser coils (underneath or behind the unit) every three months or so.
4)Do not put uncovered liquids in the refrigerator. The liquids give off vapors that add to the compressor workload.
5)Allow hot food to cool off before putting it in the refrigerator.
6)Plan ahead and remove all ingredients for each meal at one time.
7)Reduce your refrigeration electricity usage by 40 percent by replacing a 12-year-old or older unit with a new unit. An Energy Star® unit will lower usage even more.
8)Select a refrigerator or freezer that is just large enough for your needs
9)Look for energy-saving features such as the power-saver switch and improved insulation materials.
10)Use the self-cleaning cycle only for major cleaning jobs. Start the cycle right after cooking while the oven is still hot
11)Use your microwave oven whenever possible, as it draws less than half the power of its conventional oven counterpart and cooks for a much shorter amount of time.
12)Rearrange oven shelves before turning your oven on - and don’t peek at food in the oven! Every time you open the oven door, 25°-50°F is lost.
13)Wash only full loads of dishes - but do not overload dishwasher.
14)Scrape food off dishes and rinse them with cold water before placing them in the dishwasher.
15)Soak or pre-wash only in the cases of burned-on or dried-on foods.
Laundry
16)Follow detergent instructions carefully. Adding too much detergent actually hampers effective washing action and may require more energy in the form of extra rinses.
17)Set the washing machine temperature to cold or warm and the rinse temperature to cold as often as possible.
18)Wash only full loads of clothing- but do not overload machine.
19)Hang your laundry outside when weather permits.
20)Clean the lint filter thoroughly after each use.
21)Dry towels and heavy cottons in a separate load from lighter-weight fabrics.
22)Avoid over-drying. This not only wastes energy, but harms the fabric as well.
Water Heater
23)Reduce your water heating bill by 10 percent by lowering the water heater temperature from 140°F to 120F°. (Keep the temperature at 140°F if you use a dishwasher without a temperature booster.)
24)Once a year, drain a bucket of water of the bottom of the water heater tank. This gets rid of sediment, which can waste energy by “blocking” the water in the tank from the heating element.
25)Insulate your hot water supply pipes to reduce heat loss. Hardware stores sell pipe insulation kits.
26)Take showers instead of baths.
Lighting
27)Clean your light fixtures regularly.
28)Turn off lights when leaving a room.
29)Provide task lighting over desks, tool benches, etc., so that activities can be carried on without illuminating entire rooms.
30)Use compact fluorescent bulbs
Heating
31)Set the thermostat as low as comfort permits. Each degree over 68°F can add 3 percent to the amount of energy needed for heating.
32)In the winter, the air is normally dry inside your house, which is a disadvantage because people typically require a higher temperature to be comfortable than they would in a humid environment. Therefore, efficient humidifiers are a good investment for energy conservation.
33)Close heating vents and radiator valves in unused rooms. Make sure that drapes, plants, or furniture do not block registers for supply or return air.
Air Conditioning
34)Attics must be ventilated to relieve heat buildup caused by the sun. If necessary, improve attic airflow by adding or enlarging vents.
35)Set your thermostat to 78° F, or as high as comfort permits. When the weather is mild, turn off the AC and open the windows.
36)Close cooling vents in unused rooms and keep doors to unused rooms closed.
37)Check and clean or replace air filters every month.
38)Schedule periodic maintenance of cooling equipment by a licensed service representative.
Computer
39)Laptop computers use about 15-45 watts, far less than desktops( they use anywhere from 65-250).
40)A screensaver that shows any image on the screen doesn’t save any energy at all. Make sure you put your computer to sleep or just turn it off if you are not going to be using it for a while.
41)Buy an LCD monitor and get rid of your old CRT monitor. An LCD is generally over twice as efficient.
42)Turn off appliances that no one is using Turning off TV’s, lamps, computers, VCR’s, ovens, and other appliances that no one is using can reduce electric energy consumption. Appliances still consume electricity even when they are off.
Sources: http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/ , http://www.eei.org/ , http://www.getrichslowly.org/ , http://www.electricityforum.com/
If you know of any tips that I missed, please feel free to leave a comment with your tip.
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[…] tax” dollars. “Living with my means” is constantly seeking out ways to save on my electricity bill, ways to save money on my car, ways to save money at the grocery store, and finding ways to save […]
This is a good list because none of these items require much thought or much more work… however, I don’t believe my electricty bill will be cut by $2000 a year because my electricty bill is only around $50 a month the way it is. It’s hard to cut when there’s not much to cut… but all in all I enjoyed the list!
[…] are “after tax” dollars. “Living with my means” is constantly seeking out ways to save on my electricity bill, ways to save money on my car, ways to save money at the grocery store, and finding ways to save […]
“23)Reduce your water heating bill by 10 percent by lowering the water heater temperature from 140°F to 120F°. (Keep the temperature at 140°F if you use a dishwasher without a temperature booster.)”
You should be careful not to lower your water heater temperature too low. Bacteria can grow in warm water.
With the winter months setting in thick and fast I have noticed the difference in my energy bills compared to last years, I have been with Scottish Power for a wile but I would like to find to find cheaper & greener energy.