Thrifty Tip Tuesday: Save Money on your Electricity Bill!

This week I wanted to share some tips on how to Save money on your electricity bill, and Save Energy! Living Frugal, and "Living Green" go hand in hand, and it doesn't have to be a daunting task. It is the simple things that make a big difference. Some of the contents in this post might sound repeated, but sometimes they bear being repeated and sometimes it takes a few reminders for things to take root. I hope that you will find these tips to be helpful, so that you can be a better home economist, to help to reduce your carbon footprint, live frugally, save money, and do your part to make our planet Earth a better place!

1) Call your local Electric Company to have an Energy Audit done on your home! In my area we have Duke Energy and if you call them and set up an appointment, they will come to your house and do an Audit Free and you even get a Free Energy Efficiency Starter Kit! If your local Electric company will not do an Audit, you can do it yourself. Just follow some of these helpful tips below!

2) Switch to CFL light bulbs. They use four times less energy than incandescent bulbs. Switch out the most widely used bulbs in your home. Then, replace the rest as they burn out.

3) Turn off the lights, TV (ect.) when you leave a room. I am constantly walking through my house switching things off, and trying to teach my kids this one!
4) Keep your fridge and freezer full. It acts as insulation, and lessens the time that it takes to run to stay cool. As couponers, we shouldn't have a problem with this tip! LOL!
5) Plug appliances such as TVs, computers, stereos onto a power strip. Then get into the habit of turning off the power strip when the items are not in use, Or Better yet, Use Smart Strips -Replace your regular surge protectors with Smart Strip surge protectors, which automatically turn off power to plugs that are not in use. Then, say goodbye to those phantom energy users.

6) Turn off your computers at night instead of leaving them in sleep mode.

7) Use a Window Insulation Kit. It will keep your house warmer in the winter, and cooler in the summer.

8) Upgrade to Energy Star appliances!

9) Wash laundry in cold water- 90% of the energy consumed by your washing machine goes to heating water. Turn the dial to cold, and skip the bill. And Only wash a full load!

10) Hang your clothes to dry as often as possible!

11) Clean your refrigerator's coils once a month to optimize it's efficiency.

12) Install Ceiling Fans - This will help to keep the air in your home circulating, so that your air conditioner won't have to work as hard. If installing ceiling fans does seem like a daunting task to you, you could even use "Box Fans" throughout your home, and that should also help!


13) If you have an attic, install a fan in your attic! It will pull cool air into your home, and pull warmer air out. It also helps if you have good insulation in your attic.

14) To keep your house cooler in the warmer months, make sure to keep your blinds and curtains closed. It will act as a shade, to keep your house cooler! You could even install dark tinted window film, or blackout shades to keep the sun out even more.

15) Plant a tree near your home. I know that this sounds crazy to some, but there are a lot of trees around my house, and it really does help to keep my house cooler. Go Here for the fastest growing shade tree's!

16) Schedule Yearly HVAC service. Also make sure to Change your filters every 30 days to keep your HVAC systems running at peak efficiency!

17) Turn off the heat dry on your dishwasher, and dry dishes by hand instead! Also try running your dishwasher at night before you go to bed, during off peak hours. This same theory goes along with doing your laundry - If you can work on this tasks during off peak hours, you should see savings on your bill. Speaking of laundry it also helps to get all of your laundry done in one day, instead of doing laundry every day. This way the washer machine/dryer doesn't have to work as hard, therefore saving money.

18) Lower your thermostat! If you are cold in the cooler months, try wearing more layers of clothing, and cuddling up under a blanket. In the warmer months, lower the thermostat during the day when you are not home, or when you are sleeping, and it will save a lot on your bill! It's even better if you have a programmable thermostat, so that you can program it!

19) Lower the temperature on your hot water heater! Set your hot water heater to 130 degrees, and for even more savings, make sure your hot water heater is insulated! For even more savings, switch to a "Tank less hot water heater."

20) Change your dryer lint - then scrub the screen with soapy water and a brush at least once every couple months. This will maximize your dryers efficiency, and help your dryer to last longer.

21) Install Storm doors.

22) Put insulation behind electrical outlets, and switches. And speaking of switches, try switching to dimmer switches. Insulation throughout your house, really does keep your house cooler in the summer, and warmer in the winter.

23) Install weather stripping around any gaps in the windows or doors. This will allow warm air to stay inside during the winter, and keeps cool air in the house during the summer.

24) Install motion sensors so that the lights only come on when they need to. This is especially helpful for outdoor lights. You can also put programmable timers on your lights, so that they turn on and off when needed.

25) Turn your stove off, and let the built up heat finish the job. You can also skip pre-heating the stove whenever possible.And Use your microwave for cooking! It uses less energy than your stove/oven!

These are all of my favorite ways to save money on our electricity bill, do you have any tips to add to my list? If so, please leave a comment & share! I love to hear from my readers!

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