Whether you are renting or you own your home, when it comes to saving money on your energy bill, there are plenty of ways you can reduce the amount of energy you use to save on utility bills. Here are 8 quick, smart ways to save on utility bills.
How to Save on Utility Bills
These are some ideas to help you save money on your utilities:
- Unplug electronics
- Turn off lights when leaving the room
- Timing water usage
- Investing in energy-efficient equipment
- Switching to a programmable thermostat
- Install a low-flow showerhead
- Wash your clothes in cold water
- Use your dishwasher to full capacity
1. Unplug Electronics
Did you know that your appliances and electronics use energy even when not in use? Yes, it’s true. That means when your toaster is plugged into the wall in your kitchen, even if you’re not using it, energy is still being used.
This is called an energy vampire because it sucks up electricity and energy although it’s not being actively used.
So, how do you fix this?
Simple.
Unplug.
You can unplug small kitchen appliances like blenders, coffee makers, toaster, as well as electronics and equipment throughout your home like DVD players, etc.
Give this a try to see how much you can save.
2. Turn Off the Lights
This is a simple hack that can have a big impact. Just turn off the lights when you leave the room and you’ll save electricity which will translate to a lower electricity bill.
Another tip is to keep the doors in your home closed, like bedroom doors, office doors, etc.
This helps to preserve the temperature in your home like in the summer when you’re running the A/C. Keeping the doors to rooms closed will help each room stay cooler.
3. Time Your Water Usage
The next time you brush your teeth or take a shower, set a timer.
This will help you avoid taking long showers or spending too much time teeth brushing (or running the water while brushing). Try this tip with all your water usage, including when you wash the dishes, etc.
4. Use Energy-Saving Equipment
Smart power strips and energy-efficient lightbulbs are two examples of products you can invest in that will save you money on your energy bill.
With the smart power strip, plug in all your stuff to that strip, like lamps, TV, DVD player, fan, in your living room, for example.
Then, when you leave the room, turn off the power strip, which will instantly stop power to your stuff that’s plugged in. Easy.
5. Switch to a Programmable Thermostat
A programmable thermostat, like the ones from Nest, can save you up to 10% on your energy bill!
This gives you more control over the inside temperature of your home.
Pro Tip: During the day while at work, turn the temperature up so it’s warmer and then when you return home in the evening, you can set the temperature cooler.
For example, while living in South Texas, I’d often set the daytime temperature to 75 and then in the evening, lower it to 70. This kept my energy bill lower.
This may take some getting used to but it is totally worth it.
6. Get a Low-Flow Showerhead
With a low-flow showerhead, it can cut the amount of water put out by your showerhead by more than 50%! And, this translates to more savings on your water bill.
These showerheads are easy to install and relatively affordable.
7. Wash Clothes in Cold Water
First, a great way to save with washing clothes is to set one day per week as your dedicated wash day, instead of washing clothes whenever you want.
Then, wash your clothes in cold water.
Around 90% of energy used in the washer goes to heat the water so if you just make the simple switch of washing in cold water, you can get some significant savings here.
8. Pack Your Dishwasher
Similarly to clothes washing once a week, you want to use your dishwasher to maximum capacity.
That means no more running the dishwasher at half full. Make sure it’s fully loaded before you run a round of dishes in your dishwasher.
Save even more if you turn off the “dry” feature and let your dishes air dry.
Final Thoughts
These are some easy changes you can start making today to save money on your utility bills. For more opportunities to save, identify additional ways you use energy in your home and replace your current habits to save even more money.
If you’re up for investing more to save a lot over the long run, consider switching your appliances and equipment to energy-efficient versions, like your refrigerator, washer and dryer, and other major appliances. You can also look at getting solar panels and taking other steps to make your home more green and save a ton of money.
So, there you have it!
For other ways to save, check out this resource which is packed full of money-saving tips, along with this article on how to get one month ahead on your bills!
What other ways could you save on your utility bills?