It’s time to pay your bills and the first bill you open is your electricity bill. Your jaw drops. The amount staring you in the face isn’t what you expected to see.
Your electricity bill has gone up drastically and now you’re looking for ways to reduce it. Maybe you’ve been battling high energy bills for several months now, and it’s finally time to put your foot down. When you know how to save money on your electricity bill, you can begin to take small steps every month to gradually put an end to high electric bills.
Not sure how to reduce your electricity bill? In this guide, you’ll find several tips for how to lower your electricity bill. Continue reading to get started!
Unplug Unused Appliances
Do you keep all of your appliances plugged into the outlets at all times? It’s convenient to leave appliances plugged in even when not using them, but this could be adding to your high electric bills. When you’re not using your appliances, simply unplug them.
This is true for your toaster, coffee maker, microwave, and more. Don’t just look at the kitchen, however. What other items around the house could be unplugged when not using them? Lamps, hairdryers, phone chargers, and other electrical devices should all remain unplugged when not in use to help save on your energy bill.
Take Advantage of Your Dishwasher
Do you avoid using your dishwasher to help save energy? Washing your dishes by hand actually uses more water than running your dishwasher, which can also increase your energy bill. This is especially true if you have an energy-savings dishwasher.
Pack your dishwasher full before running it and consider running it at night when there’s not a high demand for energy. The more dishes you can wash at once, the less you’ll have to use it and the more energy you’ll save. You can also consider turning off the hot start option and heat dry option.
When the dishwasher is done, you can remove the dishes and air dry them to save more money.
Clean Your Dryer’s Exhaust
When’s the last time you cleaned your dryer’s ducts and exhaust? You can clean the exhaust every month with a lint remover kit. This will keep the exhaust clean and allow for proper airflow.
In return, your dryer will run much more efficiently. Your clothes will dry faster and it’ll use less energy to do so. Keeping the exhaust clean will also help to reduce the risk of fires.
Switch to LED Lightbulbs
Do you know what type of lightbulbs you use in your home? It could be worth it to take a quick survey of all the different lightbulbs and start switching them out for LED ones. LED lights use less energy than standard lightbulbs do.
Although you might have to pay money upfront to switch all of the lightbulbs out, it could save you long-term. If needed, then replace one or two lightbulbs one month and wait until next month to switch out the others until they’re all LED.
Use Window Tint or Shades
Opening your home up to natural light is ideal for boosting mood and reducing your artificial light usage in your home. However, during the hot summer months, your air conditioning unit might be working overtime to keep your home cool while the sun’s light is beaming directly into it. If you like to have the natural light come in, then just be sure to use shades when you’re not at home.
Close the shades to prevent the hot sun from reaching inside your house when you’re not there to enjoy it. You can also consider installing window tint on certain windows in the home that get the most sunlight through them.
Plant More Shrubs or Trees
If you have trouble keeping your home cool because of the sunlight, then it’s time to start gardening. When you plant more shrubs and trees in your yard, you add natural shade. Shrubs will block sunlight from entering through the windows and trees will help keep the hot sun off of your roof and keep the entire house cool.
Be sure to do your research and choose shrubs, plants, and trees that are native to your area and will require the least amount of maintenance.
Invest in a Programmable Thermostat
Programmable thermostats are beneficial because they allow you to manage the temperature in your home no matter where you’re at. They can also help you remember to lower or raise the temperature depending on the time of day or year. Here’s how it works.
You can set your programmable thermostat to automatically raise the air temperature at 9 am each morning when you leave for work during the summer. You can then have it automatically lower the temperature at 5 pm right before you come home from work. You’ll want to adjust these settings depending on the time of year, of course, but it’s a nice feature to have.
Most smart thermostats can be accessed through your smartphone as well.
Replace the Air Filters
Replacing the air filters on your HVAC unit is another important step to take if you want a cost-effective home. Take a few seconds to check your air filter. When’s the last time you replaced it?
Is it covered with dirt and dust? Replacing the filter on a regular basis will prevent dirt and dust from accumulating, which then forces the HVAC unit to work harder. Ultimately, this increases your energy usage.
The frequency of how often you change it will depend on a few different factors, such as how large your house is, how many people are living in it and if you have pets.
Insulate Your Home
Your home is already insulated, but it might be time to consider checking how well it’s insulated. Now is the best time to replace old insulation with new and improved insulation and add more insulation around the house. The more your home’s insulated, the less energy your HVAC will have to use to keep it warm or cool.
You can even wrap insulation around the pipes to give your water heater a break as well.
Check Your Home For Leaks
If there are any leaks in your home’s windows or doors, then hot or cold air is coming in while warm or cool air is escaping. This then causes your HVAC system to work overtime to try to maintain the set temperature. Do you see any cracks or openings in the seals around your windows and exterior doors?
Install weatherstripping or caulking and replace damaged seals to reduce your energy costs. These are all cheap fixes that’ll save you lots of money in the future.
Schedule an Electricity Audit
What’s an electricity audit and why should you schedule one? An electricity audit is when you have a local electricity company come out and evaluate your home’s electricity use. Most companies will provide these services for free so shop around.
The professionals will run tests on your home and inspect it for leaks. They’ll also check your insulation. At the end of the audit, they’ll go over some of the biggest issues with you and how to correct them.
Turn Off Lights When Not in Use
This one might seem like an obvious way to save money, but it’s often easier said than done. Each time you walk out of a room, do you remember to shut off the lights? When you’re not using a lamp do you turn it off before walking away?
Get into the habit of only keeping lights on when using them, and you’ll soon see the savings.
Ask About Different Discounts
One great way to save money on your electric bill that many people overlook is contacting the electric companies and asking for a list of their current discounts. Many electric companies offer discounts for a variety of reasons. For example, if you choose to go paperless, they might offer a discount for that.
There might also be a discount for making energy savings updates to your home. The list goes on and on, so never hesitate to call and ask. Even if these discounts are small, you should take advantage of all of them and watch them add up.
Do You Know How to Save Money on Your Electricity Bill?
Knowing how to save money on your electricity bill is the first step you should take to reduce your energy costs. Each tip listed above might save you just a few dollars here and there, but when you add them all up together, you have much bigger savings.
Are you looking for more ways to save money or financial resources to get through difficult times? Credito specializes in providing hardworking people with the funds they need to get through financial hardships. Credito offers quick loans during the times when you need them the most.
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