Frugal FineBlog

According to Money magazine (July 2008), home energy bills are up 9% from just a year ago.  To save money, people are now trending green and getting creative on how they are cutting thier energy usage like audits, solar panels, new energy efficient appliances etc.

Although these changes are great ideas, not only for your wallet but the environment as well, they can come with hefty investment costs.  This can leave a lot of people on tight budgets stuck with high energy bills.  Below are easy and cheap ways to save on energy that should still make a difference on your next bill:

1. Unplug appliances and electronics when you are not using them.  Referred to as “Vampire” appliances that suck energy even when turned off, devices with standby power like computers, TV and stereos should be plugged into power strips to easily shut them off.   Also unplug items like phone chargers and small kitchen devices.
2. During the summer, hang dry your towels and whites instead of using your dryer.  Not only will this keep your house cooler, but your towels will have a nice outdoor sunny scent.
3. Replace your regular bulbs with compact fluorescents
4. Remove a bulb or two from light fixtures that use 3 or more at once.  I have a light fixture in my living room that using 4 bulbs but I removed one.  The light is slighter dimmer, but I save money on buying new bulbs and some energy cost.
5. Install a Energy Star programmable thermostat for about $60 to turn down the heat when you go to sleep and to automatically raise it before you wake up out of bed. 
6. Change the air filter in your heating  and colling system every 3 -4 months.