Even if you don’t care about the environment, everyone can agree it’s better to spend money on Chipotle than on bills.
When I was younger and my dad used to go around turning down the heat and throwing extra blankets over us– I thought he was being nuts.
Then, I started to pay my own utility bill and I understood completely. I started to reduce my energy for the pure reason of saving money in college but that has evolved into reducing my energy as well.
Here are a few ways to reduce your energy; therefore, your electric and water bills throughout the year.
All-Year Energy-Savers:
Easy tips you can follow to lower your energy usage and bill:
- Make sure your windows and doors are well insulated.
- Put timers on decorative outdoor or window lights for off-hours.
- Don’t block the air vents.
- Switch to LED lights to use 75% less energy.
- Take shorter showers.
- Program thermostat so it’s not running when you’re away. Especially turn it off during work hours or any trips away.
- Unplug unused electronics, they still use energy when you’re not using them.
- Run machines at different times, don’t run the shower and washer and dishwasher all at once, it takes extra effort to produce all that water at once.
- Replace filters.
- Use the microwave for smaller items that don’t need to heat up the whole oven.
Laundry Energy-Saving Tips:
That dress you wore to dinner for an hour probably doesn’t need to be washed, do the classic smell test and decide (This excludes things like underwear and exercise clothing…hopefully that’s obvious). It’ll make your clothes last longer.
- Hang dry your clothes as much as possible, makes them last longer and avoids the HIGH energy the dryer uses.
- Hang clothes in the bathroom without the fan on to get out wrinkles created, plus avoid ironing if you’re lazy like me!
- Wait until you have a full load to wash your clothes, maximize the usage of your appliances.
- Wash on cold if possible.
- Run the washer and dryer at night if you can, less energy is being used at the same time.
- ALWAYS take out the lint before drying if you use a dryer, not only is it a fire hazard but it decreased.
Winter Energy-Saving Tips:
Nobody likes living in an icebox, but paying higher electric bills in the winter also sucks. Basically opposite of the summer months seems easy but sometimes you need a reminder!
- Open the blinds to let the sunlight and warmth in.
- Layer up, wear a sweatshirt around the house before bumping up the heat.
- Add a heavier blanket or comforter in the winter months to keep you warm at night.
- Drink and eat warm foods to keep yourself feeling warm.
Summer Energy Saving Tips:
There are so many benefits to summer, but with one huge downfall… I’m constantly sweating. There are so many free outdoor events and activities like gardening and hiking you can do!
Don’t let that A.C bill sneak up on you and fight the summer heat with a few simple tricks.
- Use the natural breeze and open all the windows, fans and windows use WAY less energy than your AC does.
- On the topic of fans, only use them for the rooms you are in, they technically don’t make the air cooler, but the breeze makes it feel cooler. Which is great, but only if you’re in the room, practice using fans only in the rooms you’re in.
- Get a lighter blanket or comforter for summer months instead of your big heavy comforter that makes you blast the AC.
- Close the blinds when you’re not home to keep the sunlight out.