Want A Lower Electric Bill?
With thorough research and a willingness for
action, I was able to
reduce
my electric bill by 30% in only a matter of one month's
time.
This
came after I was furious that the bill from AEP was about twice as high
as I was expecting. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't upset with AEP, I knew
it wasn't their fault. I knew that it was me to blame for the
poor energy efficient home that I was living in.
If you really
want a lower electric bill, I am here to show you just how easily it
was for me to accomplish my 30% decrease. It took little effort, and
very little investment to lower my bill considerably.
Below, you
will find all of the steps that I took and what purchases I made. I
highly encourage
that you go through these steps if you feel your
electric bill isn't as low as it should be. Besides having a lower
electric bill, you are also helping to save the planet. This may not be
much motivation for you. Perhaps you just want to save some cash.
But it's
nice to get that warm and fuzzy feeling inside when you realize you are
doing something to make the world a better place.
Effective Climate Control
According to the Department of Energy, about 44% of your electric bill
deals with heating and cooling.
So being smart, I decided that I should spend a good portion of my time
setting up my apartment/home to be as energy efficient as possible in
this area. The easiest thing I decided to do is also the most obvious...
Have it cooler in the winter and warmer in the summer.
A few degrees one way or the other can make a world of
difference in your energy costs!
I
wouldn't consider this the major reason why my bill was reduced by 30%,
but I certainly know it helped. For the month that I saved, I turned
the thermostat down about 3-4 degrees on average and instead of wearing
a short-sleeve shirt, I wore a hooded sweatshirt around the house. I
felt just as comfortable.
After
that, I decided to take a good look at my windows and doors and see
just how well insulated they were. To do this, I put my hands
against the cracks to see if any air was getting through.
As it turned out, this was a
huge
problem.
Around my windows and doors, it felt like they weren't even there! The
cracks were releasing a flood of cold air into the house.
To eliminate this problem, I made a few very small purchases...
1. Self-adhesive rope caulk
2. Weatherstrip Seal
3. Window
Insulation Kit
Rope
caulk comes in all shapes and sizes. And I won't even begin to tell you
I'm a caulk expert. I simply chose the one whose label won me over!
The
purpose of the caulk was to eliminate any cracks I could find. I
then decided to use weatherstrip seal to close off my door. And fill in
any areas that I missed with the rope caulk. You may find that it makes
more sense to install a complete door insulation unit. That's entirely
up to you if you want to make the investment. Anything you do to get
the cold air to stop flowing in through the cracks of your doors is a
wise use of your time.
The next thing is a window insulation kit. There are many different
ways to insulate your windows. I chose to install some
shrink wrap which covers the
entire windows. It's probably not the prettiest option. But it
definitely gets the job done better than anything. Learn how to
install a windows insulation kit with this
video.
These three purchases cost a total of $15. More than paying for
themselves
in the first month's electric bill. And it probably took a total of one
hour to install them on all of my windows and doors.
When it comes to
lowering your electric bill, this is definitely your best first step
after adjusting your thermostat. This will dramtically help your
heating
and cooling issue. During my research, I found a couple other quick
suggestions that I decided to try...
1. Shut doors that aren't in use.
*Note*
This only applies if you have heating that can be set to run only in
individual rooms. If your heating is an all or nothing heating system,
this won't really help.
2. Open your blinds in the winter to let in natural heat. Close them in
the summer to keep the heat out.
These
two suggestions I'm sure helped in reducing my electric bill.
Especially closing the doors that weren't being used. I noticed a
considerable difference in temperature in the family room when I
decided to close all of the bedroom doors.
Energy Efficient Bulbs And Appliances
The next major contributor to your energy bill deals with lighting and
appliances. This accounts for around 33% of your total monthly bill.
So it makes sense, once again, to take a long hard look in this area.
For my month of savings, I decided to replace every light bulb in my
house with a more
energy
efficent light bulb. This ended up being a lot less expensive that I
thought it would be.
I went to Wal-Mart and bought a 6-pack of
60 watt equivalent light bulbs for
only $8!
Not only do these light bulbs use a lot less energy (13 watts), they
also last about four times longer too. Saving you money in two
different ways!
As for appliances, I didn't do anything in this area to help contribute
to my lower energy costs. But if I was really trying to save every last
penny, I would have replaced every appliance in my house with one that
features the
Energy Star logo.
Any time you see Energy Star on the box, you know it's the real deal
since this company is run by the government. The thing about Energy
Star appliances like washers, dryers,something that isn't. But if you
plan on keeping these appliances for more than a year, this extra cost
more than pays for itself in the long run.
I didn't buy any appliances during my month of savings, but I decided
right then that every appliance that I purchase in the future will be
of the Energy Star variety. It just makes sense to factor in the total
cost of ownership compared to just the upfront sticker cost.
Last Minute Thoughts
I'm sure we could talk all day about how to extract every last penny
out of our energy bills. But why bother?
The tips on this page cover all of the major savers. By focusing all of
my time on the areas that use the most energy, I was able to cut my
monthly electric bill by 30%. Without having to freeze to death or
spend $1000 on some gizmo.
If we are looking at my total cost, I spent under $30 easily. More than
paying for itself in the first month alone. And all of these purchase
took about 1-2 hours to install. Not exactly a huge time waster.
I highly encourage you to consider purchasing the products on this
page. Whether you want a lower electric bill or to save the planet, I'm
sure you will find these energy savers more than worth your time.
If you are committed in doing so, don't just stop there. Tell your
friends or neighbors what you did and how much you saved. Convince just
one other person to do what you did and the world will be a much better
place.
And don't forget to tell me about your savings too when the time comes.
Tell me what you did and how much you saved by using my
contact form. I'd love to
hear about it!
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