Energy Saving Tips Plus more!

-Buy energy saving appliances if you can. A lot of stores offer rebates so look out for those. Our washer was over $700 but was actually only around $500 after rebates. It uses less water and energy. 2 ways to save money. We replace our old ones when they give out, and buy new energy ones.

-Air dry your dishes instead of heat drying.

-Clean out lint from lint trap to increase air circulation. You can throw lint in your compost as well.

-Consider buying a laptop. Use less energy and don't take up a huge amount of space. Plus most laptops turn themselves off when not in use.

-Don't over dry your clothes. Use the sensor if yours has one. Better yet, hang your clothes on a line to dry. Take advantage of warm or windy days. This will save you a bundle each month.

-Use power strips on appliances you don't use often. Household use 25% more power to power things not in use. So unplug when ever your not using or get a power strip so its easier and convenient.

-Invest in rechargeable batteries. If you use a lot of things that require batteries, it will save you a lot of money in the long run. Do not throw away batteries, recycle them. There are places that take them. Unplug charger when not in use. Do not forget.

-There is a myth that screen savers on your computer use less energy. This is not true. So turn your computer on sleep mode or turn it off completely at night or when your not using it.

-Clean warm air registers/baseboard heaters. make sure no furniture is blocking air from getting in.

-Install a programmable thermostat. We have ours at 60 at night and 65 during the day. Were used to this so it does not bother us. I turn if off during the day when the sun is out. I open up all our drapes and blinds to let the natural sun heat our home. Then turn it on later when the sun goes down and close my drapes to block any window breeze.

-Insulate your hot water heater and pipes. Cut down on heat loss.

-Maintain your heating furnace/water heater/or fireplace each year. No build up to start fires and your furnace/hot water heater will work properly saving you money

-Install new windows. That alone will save you so much money. Make sure you seal them correctly.

-Apply sun control or other reflective films on south facing windows to reduce solar gain.

-Close drapes, or blinds on south windows. They allow cold air to enter.

-Close drapes,blinds during the night. Open up during the day.

-Tape or frame in heavy duty plastic film on inside of your window during winter. Keeps cold air from getting in your home.

-You can save up to 30% more energy if you insulate your walls, attic, and under your home correctly. Check your home for this.

-Close fireplace dampers when not in use. They allow smoke out, and if your not using your fireplace then your allowing all that hot air you just paid to heat your house to escape.

-Plant trees to shade your home. They should start shading the first year but really shade after 5-10 years. Remember: your tree's have roots and take that in to account when planting. Don't want those roots to mess with your home. This will save you energy during the summer.

-Plant shrubs around your home. Plant at least 1 foot away from home. They will help insulate your home as well. Just remember to research how big these shrubs will get.

-During the winter, low lined or trees will block north or northeast wind from hitting your home.

-Use high intensity discharge (HID) or low pressure sodium lights. Look for the ones in recycled packaging. Not sure why they made them so Eco friendly just to put them in plastic packaging.

-Turn off any lights when your leaving the room.

-Use dimmers-less energy used is less on your bill

-f your air conditioner is old, consider buying an new one. It will reduce your energy to 50 % and save you money. Might pay itself off one day.

-Don't set lamps or lighting near your air conditioner. I will run longer

-Wash only full loads of dishes or dirty clothes.

-Take short showers instead of a bath. less water usage. Get a timer and see how short of a shower you can take.

-Drain a quart of water from your hot water heater to remove any sediment from it.

-Lower the temp on hot water heater, do you really need it that hot?

-Repair anything leaky. Just last month a renter of ours didn't tell us about the leaky toilet. Well our $600 water bill told us. EEK! Repair them immediately. And if your renting, tell your owners fast.One tiny leak can cost you big time.

-If heating a swimming pool, invest in a cover. Evaporation is the largest source of energy loss.

-Use a crock pot instead of your stove.

-Microwave

-Keep all lights off during the day until you absolutely have to use them.

-Switch out your old bulbs when they are done with energy efficient new ones. They can last up to 10 years.

-Hang dry your clothes if you can. I have 2 of these fold able racks that I use on a regular basis in our home.

-Use blanket warmers. We use them during the winter, why heat your home up when all you need warm is yourself. This is especially good when you have a larger home. You can get them after winter for pretty cheap. Mine was only $20 for a queen one. Get them for all your beds in use. Saves you money.

-Invest in flannel sheets for each bed. I have one flannel and one cotton set for each bed in use. Cotton ones keep heat off you during the summer. They stay nice and cold. During the winter use flannel ones. They keep you pretty warm. Again, you can get these after the winter for pretty cheap. I found my girls for only $12 a set.

-Slippers-I get cold during the day sometimes and I find that if I just put my slippers on , I feel warmer. So invest in these for everyone. Again you can get them for pretty cheap after winter. Buy and save them.

-Don't let the water run when brushing your teeth. Instead plug your sink up and put about 1/2 cup of water in it. Use this to rinse your toothbrush.

-Put a container full of water in your tank of the toilet. Saves on water for you. Try a small soda bottle filled with water.

-Cover a fireplace-we found that cold air leaked from our gas fireplace during the really cold nights. We covered it with just a quilt and it kept cold air out. Wasn't the prettiest but it worked. But I like quilts so it didn't bother me.

-Keep lap blankets near. We have a few around our living and sitting room for when we get a little cold. Saves you energy. So instead of turning up the heat, grab a blanket and your slippers. Give you an excuse to cuddle as well.

-Take a shower/bath every other day. Cuts your water bill in half. I used to take one everyday but now its every other day. Our bill went down pretty good after that. My husband and I take a shower one day. The next our 2 older girls take a shower and I give my twins a bath together. Sometimes they can go 3 days without a shower/bath. Depends on if they played hard.

-Have friends and family over-sounds weird but the more people in your home, the less energy you use to heat your home. So rotate having dinner at friends/family. They come to your home, you use less energy. You go to their home, turn off your heat. Use no energy that way. Win win situation. Plus saves you money on food as well.

-Got quilts? I find them at thrift stores. We use them at the foot of our beds to keep our feet warmer. Then we don't get cold at night. They are pretty cheap at thrift stores and most the time they are crazy quilts. Cool colors and patterns hand made which you cannot find in a store. They are super expensive in stores anyways. Cannot find a quilt? There are tons of crocheted blankets in thrift stores, these will work too.

-Have your kids run around playing before they go to bed. They will be hot and tired. They will be less likely to be fussy going to bed, and they will be plenty warm.

-Wear your clothes more than once. My mother taught this one to me. If there are no signs of wear, wear them again. We had to wash our clothes in a coin laundry room so to make money stretch we wear everything at least twice. This is especially helpful when you have kids. Kids (or at least mine) change their clothes many times a day. Just make sure to put them away again.

-Keep everything unplugged. Only plug it in when you are using them. Obviously some things have to be plugged in all the time but not the toaster,coffee pot, lamps, etc.

-A/C unit. To save on energy, close off all vents except in the living quarters. Keep all doors shut in each room you closed the vent. This will keep all the cold air in your living area's and not cool down rooms where there is no one in there. Be sure to keep all doors shut including the front/back door. You know kids...in and out..in and out..

-Charge your phone in the car. This will save you some money. Not much but some. Maybe try charging it at work.

-Cook cold meals on cold days, hot meals on hot days. Make sense? When you cook hot meals on hot days, your house gets way too hot making your a/c work over time. During the cold, cook hot meals. This way when you cook, it heats up your home.

-Go solar! Have sidewalk lights hooked up? Get some solar ones and they use the suns energy to light up your walk way. They even sell solar seasonal lights now. Get them now since the season is over. (just bought my solar side walk lights for $4.95 at Target for a pk of 4).

-Stop blow drying your hair. This one is easy!

-National no TV week will save you some energy. Try it out!