How do you save on the electric bill

[pennywise]

I read an article in the wall street journal about phantom electricity. Leaving items plugged in pulls usage. I went around my house and could not believe the number of clock radios that I unplugged and put away. I pull the plug on the microwave when not in use. Put most on a surge protector that takes a flip of the button to turn on. Just looked at the fridge/freezer and turned it down (it was running continuous over the past few days). Limit TV watching to only shows worth it - do not just put it on for background noise. You can lower the watage in your bulbs, if you would like. Average bill: 28 dollars per month.

[Bruce Wayne]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

You can save vast sums of money by doing this sort of thing, and of course you help the environment an awful lot too. Simple things like not leaving your tv on standby or your computer on when you're not using it can save alot of energy.

Do you have a link to the article?

[jhd815]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

I have my electricy go out on the hottest day of the year for 29 hours - can't wait to see how much I saved, lol.

[PrincessPerky]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

I did that awhile back, I do still have a clock in each room(or the ones that already had them) but I put all the big stuff on surge protectors so every morning I turn on the net and computer. I can't say how much I saved since I did it at the same time as the summer need for fans came on. But the bill went down the first month, and that is unusual for spring.

[terry1156]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

We simply get out of the house during the day. The local mall is air conditioned with a lot of benches to people watch or just walk around to get some exercise. We also have a small movie theater that offers weekday $1.00 matinees on Tuesdays. It costs a dollar to get in, but we save more than that on air conditioning costs.

[Fern]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

If you have old kitchen appliances, like a fridge that's more than 10 years old, they're considered real energy guzzlers and should be replaced with more energy-efficient models.

[Bruce Wayne]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

And you can always dispose of your old fridges at Freecycle so it isn't sent directly to the landfill.

[akaivyleaf]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

I save by washing clothes and using the dryer after midnight- but I'm a person whose up all times of day and night. I understand that energy is cheaper the later it is at night. I'm also not home during the day so my A/C (nor heat when the weather dictates) is never on. I have to do better about the TV watching me, and my computer being on all weekend long.

Sharon

[gakline]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

I use fluorescent lightbulbs in all my lamps. Definately an energy saver. I also turn my a/c up to 80ish during the day.

[DivaJen]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

If you have old kitchen appliances, like a fridge that's more than 10 years old, they're considered real energy guzzlers and should be replaced with more energy-efficient models.

DH and I have talked about this. I think I got this frig that we have back in 1994.

And I like the freecycle idea for getting rid of it, too!

[PRICEPLUS]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

Most of my appliances are energy efficient. I have installed energy saver bulbs where possible. I keep the AC at a reasonable setting. I try to get more than one days wear out of some clothing items in order to cut down on washing machine useage. I line dry my clothes whenever possible.

Turn lights off when leaving the room. Turn off radio and/or TV if no one is listening or watching.

Every little bit helps so I use as little as I possibly can.

[mjrube94]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

akaivyleaf, if you haven't already done so, you may want to call your electric/gas company to make sure that they offer a lower rate for non-peak usage. After reading someone else's recommendation to do this, I was all gung ho, but neither of those companies in my area offer that discount.

[akaivyleaf]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

I hadn't thought to call and ask them if they offered a "true" non-peak usage rate. Since that is when I have time to do it, thats when it will be done anyway. I guess I was maybe fooling myself into thinking it was cheaper. I will make the cal and report back on my findings.

[fultron]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

a few suggestions for lowering your energy bill, some already mentioned:

Replace old appliances with newer models that are more energy efficient.
Use energy-efficient light bulbs (they only use about a third of the power as regular bulbs)
Use drapes to keep the sun out during the day.
Lower the temperature on your hot water heater a couple of degrees.
Hang dry your clothes instead of using a dryer.
Ask if your electric provider offers free energy-audits. They may come to your house and offer suggestions on how to improve efficiency.

[Jorge]

Re: How do you save on the electric bill

$28 per month is great. I'm pretty good at turning off lights and unplugging things (like the electricity guzzling dehumidifier), but my son and SO like to keep the house cool in summer and warm in winter. Personally, the heat doesn't bother me, so I usually sweat it out when I'm home alone (drink lots of water, wear shorts, try not to do anything that takes a lot of effort) and in the winter, you'll always see me with a wool sweater on. Not using the dryer is something I can really improve upon! We have an automatic thermostat that helps with the regulation of temps... we have the system totally off usually during the days/nights when we're not home. Almost all of our lamps are flourescent and I try to only use the grill (with a lot of lava rocks) in the summer. The lava rocks help to retain the heat MUCH better and then we don't have to use as much gas (and we're not using the electricity for stove/oven).