Amy 4 Comments
This is day 5 of How to Live on One Income Guide. To read all the post in order start on Day 1 here.
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12 Ways to Cut Your Electricity Bill in Half
We talked about shopping around for electricity yesterday in how to save money without trying. By simply shopping around you can reduce your electric bill in one phone call. Thus cutting down on your monthly expenses. But there are also some incredibly easy ways to cut down on your electric bill buy just doing a few things around your home.
Seal Your Home
This is an easy step since it really only needs to be done once. Check all of the doors and windows around your home. If you can see any light around the door frame after the door is closed, then you have a leak. Buy some vinylweather strip sealor some foam weather sealto seal windows and doors. Your outlet and switchesalong the exterior walls leak an enormous amount of air.
Simplytake the covers off and use a foam sealantto seal all of the outlets and switches. Then use plug covers to prevent any air from coming in. If you add up all the outlets and switches on your exterior walls, it is the equivalent to leaving a window open all the time. There has always been a draft in our house, until we did these things this last year. I was amazed how much we have saved on electricity and how comfortable our house is year round.
Turn Off Electronic Devices
I know this one sounds easy, but getting the kids and everyone to participate is a great idea. Turn off TVs, cable boxes, video games and lights when not in use. To make it super easy purchase a surge protector, like this one, for all your major electronics and plug them into one spot.When you are finished using them for the evening turn off the surge protector. This prevents phantom electricity usage of these devices while they are not in use.
Heating and Cooling Energy Costs
After you have sealed your home, there are still some additional ways to save on heating and cooling your home. A must is a programmable thermostatthat doesn’t have to be expensive. It will pay for itself in just a few months. Program your thermostat to be used less while you are not at home. Change out the air filter every three months or when the seasons change. Every equinox we change our air filters in our home. It is an easy way to remember when to change them.
Cooking Can Cut Your Electric Bill
In the winter time I love to use my oven to bake. After the oven is done cooking, I crack the door a little to let the heat escape into the room. This helps the heating bill during those cold winter months. During the summer it is best to use a slow cooker to warm and cook meals. This will not heat the entire house like the oven will.
Save With Laundry
Use the outdoors to dry the clothes in the summer. This saves on the dryer and adding any additional heat into the home. Also wool dryer balls can reduce overall drying time of any load. These are easy to make and are worth every penny. Plus the clothes are softer after using wool dryer balls.
Other Ways toCut Your Electric Bill
Purchase LED lights whenever possible. This may seem like a big investment at first, but most bulbs are guaranteed up to 10 years. These will pay for themselves in the first year. I like to purchase one a month when I visit the store. Soon our entire house will be only LED lights. When replacing appliances, look for the most energy efficient appliances. These may be a little more expensive, but will save you more money in the long run.
Use solar outdoor lighting. Let the sun charge up the batteries all day and at night they can illuminate the outdoors. We only have solar lighting for outdoors and I just love the glow it adds to our yard. You can make a cute solar outdoor light like the one I made here.
Buy energy efficient appliances. These will pay for themselves overtime. It is better to spend a little extra money on something that is going to last, than on something to replace in a few years.
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[Go to day 6 of How to Live on One Income]
