I've always heard that I should adjust my thermostat so the AC doesn't have to work as hard at night while sleeping. But doesn't that make it work just as hard to cool down my warmer apartment in the morning? I've always been confused!
It always shocks me when I hear about the number of people who leave plugs turned on when the appliance isn't in use. This wastes a lot of money over the course of the year, so it is certainly something that you should be trying to think about if you can. I also always make sure that my washing machine is full before I use it, because it is only going to use the same amount of power no matter how full it is. So this is what I always try to do to make sure that nothing is ever going to be wasted.
Apart from the excellent tips already given - doing the following combined with those - will result in significant savings too Using only high rated energy efficient electrical appliances Only heating or cooling the rooms that are in use Keeping doors shut on all rooms Only having lights or a light on in the room that is in use Using a pressure cooker and microwave as much as possible and especially if you use an electric cooker and only boil a kettle with the amount of water required for the number of drinks that are needed.
- Switch to LED lighting. - Table lamps could also reduce the amount of energy you use. - Hand wash all utensils. - Line dry your clothes if you can. - Go to bed earlier. Less TV watched = to some money saved on electricity. - Install solar panels.
A couple more money saving tips for those that use electric ovens are Not preheating the oven more than is needed and never for more than 10 minutes Turn off the oven 10 minutes prior to the end of the cooking time and let the trapped heat finish off the cooking process as just doing that can shave quite a bit off the bill too. I would also just add - that although many people assume that hand-washing the dishes saves more money than using a dishwasher - its actually quite the opposite - as you will in fact save way more by using a dishwasher - for the simple reason - that dishwashers use one-sixth of the water, half the energy and less detergent - compared to hand washing.
This is a very good thread! I'm very big on conserving energy, especially because where I am we have a severe shortage of electricity. I'm very religious when it comes to turning off lights in rooms that aren't in use. I've even been know to do this at my friends' houses LOL Usually the only lights I have on are whatever room I'm in (usually the office) and the front room. When i'm reading, my Kindle provides more than enough light for me not have to have light on. In fact, it's better this way. If I'm reading in bed, my husband is usually in bed with me, watching something too. Also, when I'm boiling the kettle for tea, I only put in enough water for however many cups I'm making. I find it weird that most people will always fill the kettle right up to the top!
I try to air dry most of my clothes after being washed. When the weather starts changing and getting colder, I try not to turn on my furnace at first, but try to use an infrared heater to get the chill out in the morning. I am not one to do dishes just because a few are in the sink. I wait until I have a full sink of dishes before I do them. I don't have a dishwasher, I didn't want to take up the cupboard when I built my house, so I nixed the dishwasher. I very rarely do other than a full load of laundry.
Thanks for the tips! I don't actually even use a dishwasher because I think it's more conservative to just wash by hand then to use the machine. And now that it's summer, you can just take your clothes outside to hang dry haha. You get even more savings because you don't even need to turn the machines on. Also I'd check your refrigerators and freezers because picking the right one will save you a lot of money each year. Recently I ditched my old freezer for an energy efficient one because it doesn't use as much electricity to keep running. I never turn my fridge off because I always have stuff in there and it's just so annoying to start it up and wait for it to get cool again. But yeah getting the right appliances really matters.
These are great tips. I do most of my laundry washing with cold water, hang the blankets and big things up to dry, and have trained my kids to turn off lights when they are done in a room.
