Lower your energy bill by 25% in 5 EASY STEPS...
Did you know that the average American family spends over $1,600 a year on their electricity bill? Unfortunately, the majority of the energy consumed is wasted. Not only is that energy wasted the electricity that we generate by fossil fuels for the average family home puts more carbon dioxide into the air than that of two cars.
I'm always looking for ways to save money wherever possible and do my small part for the environment. If you're like me, then you're most likely throwing away money in the name of convenience on a daily basis. Don't you think it's time we both did our bit for the environment and saved a few dollars at the same time?
With just a few minor adjustments in our behaviors and a few tweaks here and there I'm sure we can all knock off fifty or sixty dollars from our energy bill each month, perhaps even more? With these same tips that I'm about to list below, my father was able to recently reduce his Orlando energy bill by an additional $150 per month (from $350 a month down to $200). I don't know about you, but I can sure think of a lot of little extras I'd like to buy with that hundred and fifty each month.
TIP 1 - Air Conditioning:
A/C and cooling your house in Florida can account for over 50% of your electricity bill. 78 degrees is the magic number for saving money and for every degree over that it is estimated that you will save between 6 and 8 percent on your cooling bill.
Keep your A/C on auto and shut it off during the day when you are at work or set it to 85 degrees. If you don't have an auto programmer thermostat, you can upgrade your existing one pretty cheaply by running off to home depot and getting one (around $30 to $40 and they're easy to install). It'll pay for itself in no time at all - perhaps even the first month. I particularly love the programmers that have three settings during the night time, day time and afternoons and then different settings for the weekends. You can even change the settings to keep the house cooler every Wednesday if Wednesday is the day when you are home every week.
Here are a couple of other little tid bits that will help out the A/C unit:
Change the filter out once a month so that your A/C unit isn't struggling to cool the home as it is pushing air through the filter (more hygienic as well).
Use your shades, drapes and blinds to keep the heat out of the house
Use ceiling fans to feel cooler when you are in a room, but make sure you shut them off when you leave.
Check all windows and doors - make sure they aren't letting the cool air out. Buy some caulk and weather stripping to give your windows and doors a good seal to keep that cool air in. Windows and doors are the major cause of cooling loss in a home. Weather stripping and caulk is very cheap and can save you a lot of money.
TIP 2 - Did you know that switches go ON & OFF?
I just noticed that I'm starting to sound like my parents. Haha. I can even hear my parents telling me that I'm trying to cool down the neighborhood by leaving the doors open while the air is running.
Anyway, now that I'm starting to sound like my parents, "How hard is it to shut off a light when you leave the room!?" I don't know about you, but I think I've learned to be lazy by not shutting off the lights, therefore it is only logical that I can unlearn this behavior and use the off switch a little more often.
This goes for other electronic items as well like computer monitors and televisions. Even when in standby mode both TV's and monitors utilize electricity. Plugging these devices into a power strip can not only give you protection against lightening and power spikes, but can also make it easier for you to shut off the entire strip and save energy before going to bed each night.
TIP 3 - Save on your hot water heating bill
Your hot water heating is another biggie when it comes to chewing up the electricity bill. By removing the front access cover on your hot water heater you can adjust the temperature with the turn of a screwdriver to 120 - 125 degrees for optimum efficiency. Additionally, there is a lot less chance of children being scalded by hot water at this temperature.
If you want to go one step further (and it's definitely worth it), again you can purchase a timer for your hot water from home depot or any other hardware store for around $40. These timers are very simple to install and can be regulated for heating in the evenings and mornings as well as different settings for weekends for those of us that like to sleep in on a Saturday. Why heat water at 3am in the morning or midday when you are going to be at work?
TIP 4 - Lighting
Lighting consumes as much as 25% of your energy bill so it is a big factor in reducing your energy consumption.
Replace all of your incandescent lights with low wattage fluorescent light bulbs. Yes, I know they're a little ugly but it's for a good cause right? A 22 watt fluorescent bulb will have the same output as a 100 watt bulb. If you are renting...no problem, just remove the existing lights and put them in a box. You can return them once you move out and take your fluorescents with you because they are going to last you for many years to come.
Compact fluorescent light bulbs will last you 10 times longer than a incandescent and will typically use 1/3 the amount of electricity in comparison.
But don't stop there with the lighting! If you have your garden all lit up during the evenings, there are now cheaper more energy efficient bulbs that utilize solar power for your garden. The lights I use charge all day and typically run from the time the sun goes down until about 3am in the morning.
TIP 5 - Incentives for the kids
The young ones are often the biggest energy thieves in the household. We need to get these offenders on our side and make them our allies by offering incentives to turn off the lights, shut down the TV and shut doors when the A/C is on. What better way to do this than to add to their allowances the difference in savings or the full amount of the average savings from your monthly Orlando electric bill?
Well, I hope you've found these tips to be helpful. I'd love to hear about some of your success stories. Please feel free to write me or post a response to this blog.