by Cyndi Li

Created on: August 10, 2008   Last Updated: June 13, 2011

Saving money on electricity isn't all that difficult. In fact, with the price of just about everything sky rocketing it's a wise decision to save anywhere you can. Take a look at these tips for lowering your electricity consumption and your monthly electric bill.

During the warm months
Properly maintain your air conditioners. Vacuum or replace the filters and have the units serviced by an HVAC professional. Have your central air system serviced and cleaned regularly. This should include cleaning out all the duct work as well. These steps will allow both your air conditioners and central air system to run more easily, reducing the work load put on them and thus reducing the amount of electricity needed to run them.

"Shut the door. I'm not heating the whole town." I remember hearing that a time or two growing up. The truth is, being conscious to make sure doors or windows aren't left open or even ajar will help trap all that cool air inside the house where you want it to be. Leave weather stripping along the bottom of your doors and windows also. This will create a tighter seal.

Keep the sunlight outside. The sun's rays radiate tremendous heat. Draw the window shades on the sides of the house where the sunlight comes in. Your cooling system won't have to work so hard to keep the house cool.

A sure fire way to reduce your energy bill is to hang your laundry rather than drying it in the clothes dryer. Clothes dryers draw incredibly large amounts of electricity. Instead, hang your laundry outside and let Mother Nature dry it for you at no cost.

If you have an electric oven/range, cook outside on the grill instead. Not only is this a good way to lower your electric bill, but who doesn't enjoy biting into a big, fat, juicy, burger that's been cooked over an open flame while sitting under the shade of a maple tree?

During the cold months
If you heat with electricity, allow as much sunlight into your house as possible. Those penetrating sun rays will help to heat your house up naturally.

Keep your vents and radiators clear. If you have no choice but to keep furniture in front of them, pull it forward a tad to allow more of the heat to escape into the room.

Lock your windows. When you shut your windows without locking them there is a small gap between the bottom of the window and the sill. This little 1/16 of an inch gap will allow that frigid winter air to get in.

In additional to these tips, the following suggestions can be incorporated year-round in your efforts to save money on electricity.

Use compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL) in place of incandescent. They use 75% less energy and last 10 times longer.

Unplug appliances after use. All appliances draw energy; even when they aren't being used. Especially those equipped with built-in clocks and illuminated on/off indicators.

Turn your refrigerator/freezer thermostat up a notch.

Turn your water heater temperature down down a notch.

Purchase energy efficient appliances.

Install a programmable thermostat to regulate temperature.

Follow this advice, and not only will you're monthly electric bill be lower, you'll be doing your part to decrease the consumption of our natural resources.

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