Energy prices are only going to continue to go up and up. If you rely on fossil fuels in any way you will be interested in knowing how to save money on utility bills.
You will be relieved to know there are a lot of simple and inexpensive things you can do to reduce the amount of money you use on the various utilities that have become indispensable for us in the modern industrialized world. Here is a list of things you can do to save on heating, cooling, lighting and electrical appliances.
1. Heating and Cooling
All of these are notorious for burning up a lot of energy and increasing your bills.
You ought to be using a natural gas water heater if you are not already. These things are great and they use a mere 50% of the energy that a conventional water heater does.
Take advantage of methods to cool down your house naturally. If you can plant trees on the east and west of your home. The shade they provide will keep your house up to four degrees cooler in the summer by reducing the amount of sun that hits your roof and windows. They will also act as a wind breaker in the winter to keep your house warm. You should investigate which kind of trees are suitable for the soil you have as some trees will have roots that will stretch under your house and undermine the foundations.
Make sure that you seal up all the cracks in your house where air leaks out. This is especially needed to stop warm air escaping in the winter. Be sure to seal any ducts, close the damper if you have a fireplace and turn of extractor fans when they are not necessary.
2. Lighting Tips
Use dimmers so you can adjust the brightness of the bulbs in your home. Only use them at the brightness you need for work. Use task lighting when you are working instead of trying to illuminate a whole area with a big overhead light.
For outdoor light use a timer or motion sensor to turn them on and off.
Use as much natural light as possible in your home. Thing about the design of your rooms and how you can direct more natural light into dark spaces. People don't realize how to save money on utility bills sometimes as the solutions are not obvious. Consider installing skylights and using mirrors to reflect light.
3. Home Electronics
Did you know that over 60% of the power that electronic devices use is when they are on standby. That is a lot of energy to be wasting and so you should turn them off when you are not using them. All they do is flash the time at you in a green light. To make it easier you can plug multiple devices into an extension board and switch them all off together.
Turn off computers that are not being used. See above for the amount of juice they burn when on standby. At least set them to sleep or hibernate as this will use a lot less energy.
4. Appliances
Replace your refrigerator if it was manufactured before 1993. Due to efficiency regulations that came into place that year newer models use a lot less energy. In fact a simple old refrigerator could be sucking up $140 of electricity more than a new one.
If you use a dryer try to wash multiply loads on the same day. When you put a second load in the dryer you will use up residual heat. This is how to save on bills.
If you are serious about putting more away each month and having an easier life then you must know how to save on bills. It is an essential part of any plan to improve your situation and get the things you want.
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By David Gregson
