Save Money on Utilities

Wouldn't you like to have some extra money to spend on things you enjoy doing. Follow these cost-saving measures and you'll save a significant amount of money every month.

1. Get advice from your utility company. Call your utility company to inquire if they can inspect your home for energy effectiveness. During the visit, ask if they can recommend inexpensive ways to cut energy costs.

2. Clean or replace furnace and airconditioner filters regularly. If you're a renter and paying for your heating and cooling, ask the landlord if this is being done. Dirty filters will result in higher bills because the system has to work harder.

3. Turn on dishwasher, washing machine and dryer only with a full load. Hang clothes on a rack to dry & use the dryer for items such as towels or sheets. Not only will you save money, but your clothes will last longer.

4. Clean the lint filter in you dryer often. Too much lint on the filter will cause the dryer to operate for a longer time.

5. Don't overuse dryer. Maybe you need less heat for that load of laundry. Experiment by changing to different amounts of time for drying. It might take twenty minutes, instead of thirty minutes to dry.

6. Buy energy-efficient appliances. When shopping for new appliances, look for the Energy Guide Label that is required by federal law. It compares ratings on energy efficiency for new appliances.

7. Reduce the temperature of the hot water tank. You can lower it to 120 degrees and the water will propably be hot enough.

8. Turn down the heat when you leave the house for a few hours. When no one is home and you're out for a while, turn down the heat to 68 degrees.

9. Turn down the heat when you're sleeping. It's more comfortable anyways to sleep in a cooler room. Drop the heat to 68 degrees and sleep with a heavier blanket, if necessary.

10. Turn up the thermastat on your airconditioner. Same thing applies to cooling your home. If out for a while or sleeping, set the thermastat a few degrees higher.

11. Let the sun shine in. Open window coverings to let the sun warm the room.

12. Close window coverings. Want your home to stay cool. Close the drapes or blinds to keep the sun out.

13. Close off unused areas of your home. Close air ducts and doors of rooms that are seldom used, such as guest rooms or storage areas.

14. Apply calking around windows and doors anywhere that air leaks in.

15. Weatherize your home by putting weather stripping around windows and doors.

16. Need a new airconditioner? Make sure it's an energy-efficent model.

17. Replace old windows with newer ones.

18. Turn off lights, tv's, radios, stereos, computers, etc. when leaving the room for more than ten minutes.

19. Have leaky faucets fixed.

20. Use energy-efficient low-wattage light bulbs.

21. Install energy-saver showerheads.

22. Take showers instead of baths. It cuts down on the use of hot water.
Also, don't spend more time than necessary in the shower.

23. Don't let water run while brushing teeth or shaving.

24. Use the microwave for warming food. A lot of energy is used to heat up an oven.

25. Don't pack the refrigerator with too many items. Leave a couple of inches between items to allow for better circulation of air.

26. Install ceiling fans. You can use the ceiling fans to cool a room. Ceiling fans can also be used with the airconditioner. Raise the thermostat of the airconditioner by a few degrees & turn on the fan. It's much cheaper to run the ceiling fan than the airconditioner.

27. Enroll in load-management programs and off-hour rate programs. Your electricity company can give you all the information about these money-saving programs.

28. Pay the same amount for electricity every month. The utility company will establish a monthly fee by calculating the average amounts of electricity used in the past.
You'll know every month the amount of your electricity bill.

29. For telephone (including cell phone), television & internet access, compare plans.
Rates have dropped considerably and are very competitive. Choose a plan that meets your needs.

30. If you make more than a few long-distance calls every month, you should sign up for a long-distance plan.

31. Buy a prepaid long-distance card for the occasional call. They're much cheaper than using your telephone company and are sold all over, in drug stores and grocery stores.

32. For your monthly telephone service, stick to a basic plan. Have you signed up for additional options such as conference calling and call forwarding that you don't need?
Save money on your monthly bill by cancelling them.

33. Buy your phone instead of leasing it from the telephone company.

34. E-mail to communicate. Whenever possible, use e-mail instead of your phone to keep in touch. Don't waste time on hold, when calling a business, send an e-mail. You can also e-mail your out-of-town friends and family to reduce your long-distance calls.

35. Make sure you understand the limitations of your mobile (cell) phone plan. Do you know about peak calling times, area coverage and roaming and long-distance charges?
Avoid paying unnecessary fees by having customer service explain everything to you carefully before signing up with a company.

36. Need a phone number? Don't call directory assistance, look it up in the telephone book.