Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Electric Bill

I don't know if you like spending money but I love to spend money...on myself! My electric bill was $100.00 higher this month as compared to last month's bill! Summer is here that's for sure!
Well, in a moment of greed (b/c I want to keep my money for myself) I have looked for energy saving tips. I thought I would share some of them with you:

*Turn off your computer and monitor when not in use.
*Use compact fluorescent light bulbs. I know these are more expensive than regular bulbs but apparently they last longer too. I don't actually own any of these bulbs yet--I'm waiting for my current ones to run out.
*Plug home electronics, such as TVs and DVD players, into power strips; turn the power strip off when the equipment is not in use (TVs and DVD players in standby mode still use several watts of power).
*Wash and dry only full loads of clothes.
*Wash full loads of dishes in the dishwasher.
*Keep range-top burners clean; they will reflect the heat better and save energy.
*Use a covered kettle or pan to boil water; it's faster and uses less energy.
*Match the size of the pan to the heating element.
*Use the a microwave, toaster oven, or counter top grill instead of the entire stove.
*Unless you're dealing with oily stains, the warm or cold water setting on your machine will do a good job cleaning your clothes (about 90% of the energy used for washing clothes is for heating the water).
*Clean your lint filter in the dryer after every load to improve air circulation.
*Inspect your dryer vent often to ensure it is not blocked. This will save energy and may prevent a fire also.
*Automatic switching of your computer to sleep mode or manually turning off monitors is always better than using screen savers.
*Unplug battery chargers when the batteries are fully charged or the chargers are not in use.

Now, this is the just the list of things that apply to my household or that I will actually do. See our Websites List for the Department of Energy's website that has more information.

3 comments:

Jared said...

I used your money-saving tips and I saved $22,000. Why didn't I think of these things sooner?

Cary Plunkett said...

That's enough to get a new car!!!

SDP said...

good info, now just to put them in practice!