Utility bills can be very high. My electric bill during the spring and summer months is usually around $200 and during the winter around $40. There's many things that I've done to lower it to that $200 mark during the hot months, but that's still so high! My gas bill is the exact opposite of my electric bill in the winter months of course.
Here are some of the things I've done or want to do:
- Switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs. My energy provider recently offered energy saving light bulbs for $0.50 a piece and I bought some, but not nearly enough.
- Unplug electronics such as computers, chargers and so on when you are not using them. This consisted of a bulk of our electric bill before, and we have noticed that our bill has gone down since.
- Try to set your thermostat to at least 76 degrees during the summer months and around 68-70 in the winter months.
- Use black curtains in the winter to attract sunlight and use white curtains in the summer to repel sunlight.
- Use ceiling fans in your home. Remember though that ceiling fans do not cool down the room, only the people in it, so it's wasteful to have the fan on when no one is in there.
- Close vents and shut doors to rooms that you do not use. I've heard though that you should never shut more than 15% of the vents in your house.
- And of course, turn off the lights when you are not in the room. My BF used to leave lights on all the time, but now he has finally learned.
- Buy a programmable thermostat
- Buy water efficient shower heads for the bathroom
- Make sure you are constantly checking your utility bills, as one month my electric bill was close to $500, and it turned out that we were paying for our neighbors electricity also! The utility company does make mistakes…
- Make sure your windows are well-insulated also.
One thing that I have been thinking about doing in installing solar panels on my house. I know of a couple who bought solar panels which cost around $20,000 and they put some money down on it and got 0% financing for the life of the loan, and now they pay around $100 a month for the next 5 years. Their electric/gas bill has now dropped to around $30 a month altogether, and this just sounds like such a great way to save and help the earth. They also said that their daily activities are not impacted by the solar panel or anything, so I'm very much thinking about it.
Any other tips for the upcoming winter months?
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~Carla~ says
September 29, 2011 at 3:43 amGreat tips!! My hubby just told me that there's going to be a new tax on our hydro bill! I will NOT BE HAPPY if this is true!! We pay enough taxes, etc… Ugh! The only other tip I can think of is to use your appliances set to the "time of day" rates to save $$ if possible.
Live Simply- Live We says
September 29, 2011 at 3:56 amOurs has been so high. With temp in the hundreds for so long we cranked the ac. Hopefully when it cools down we can lower our bill
Free!~ says
September 29, 2011 at 4:39 amI do several things regularly to save on energy. I have the dishwasher set to skip the heated dry cycle. I just shake any excess water off of the dishes or dry with a kitchen towel if it has a lid ( I don't want it moldy smelling.I bought electric blankets for all 4 beds in the house. The heater gets turned off at night and everyone stays toasty warm in bed. It was an initial investment of about $200 but has more than paid for itself over the last 3 years of winters.I rarely use the AC in the summer. It is reserved for when company comes over or when I'm doing housework and getting too hot. My bill in July was $49 and it gets over 100 degrees where I live. I use lots of fans and keep all of the curtains closed all day. It really helps keep the heat out. I like to enjoy other places "free to me AC".In the summer, I wash dishes in cold water. I use a dishwasher so it's just the stuff that doesn't fit or can't go in. It's so hot outside that the cold water isn't all that cold and used with soap it works just fine.I wash all clothes in cold water. It's really not that cold in the warm months. In the colder months, I use warm because cold doesn't seem to do a good job at getting smells and stains out.I hang all laundry to dry about 5 months of the year.I'm sure there is more but these are the basic things I do everyday.
style-for-style says
September 29, 2011 at 4:54 amyea unplugging makes a difference so do energy saving shades!
A.Marie says
September 29, 2011 at 6:51 amGreat post and great tips!!! 🙂
Confessions From A W says
September 29, 2011 at 6:55 amHey there Michelle! I had to come over and give you hugs after your comment on my blog — I can relate (due to a prior relationship), so if you ever need to chat, feel free to email me.And I really like your blog! These are all very usable tips, not that whole "above my head" advice I get on TV or magazines.
diggingoutandup says
September 29, 2011 at 9:26 amThe big one at my place was drafts. That plastic window film makes a HUGE difference. I bought a bulk size roll with several rolls of double sided tape for $27 last weekend. Another place to check for that is external doors. I didn't figure out why my kitchen was so cold until I realized during the summer that I could see daylight through the edge of the door. Weather stripping made a big difference, and I'm sewing some draft blockers for the bottom of the door next week.
SonyaAnn says
September 29, 2011 at 4:26 pmGreat tips. I do everything that I can to get the electric and the gas bill down. My hubs and son love video games and the systems are huge drains. I usually just pull the plug on them when they aren't looking.