Household Tips to Conserve Energy and Save Money

Who doesn't want to save money and conserve energy? The sad thing is that many people use more and pay more for home energy than they need to. With better more-informed choices, home energy consumers can spend less on energy costs and conserve energy in the process. Here are several household tips you can follow to conserve energy in your home and save money.

Conserve Energy with Smart Landscaping

A simple landscape tip that can save money and energy inside the home is to plant trees around your home that can shade your home from the heat of the sun and create a wind block. Summer or winter, evergreen trees can offer savings to the home owner, and deciduous trees can offer summer shade.

Conserve Energy in the Bathroom

In your bathroom, consider a low-flow shower head to reduce the amount of water it takes for showers. In addition, if you switch to taking more showers and fewer baths, you can also save water and save money.

Remember when folks used to put a brick in the toilet tank to conserve water with each flush? Well here's a different take on that. Instead, fill a water bottle full of water and place it in the toilet tank. This simple trick can save gallons of water over the course of a year, saving you money and conserving a natural resource.

Here's a practical suggestion. Fix those drippy faucets. Those little water drips may not seem like much water, but added up over a week, a month, or a year, those little drips can amount to major gallons of water wasted. Fixing drippy faucets saves money and energy.

Conserve Energy in the Laundry

Consider updating your household major appliance to Energy Star appliances that meet energy efficiency guidelines set by the EPA and DOC. Appliances that use less energy save energy and save you money.

If your clothes dryer has a moisture sensor and you use it when drying loads of clothes, that moisture sensor will turn off the dryer when clothing is dry. That way, your dryer loads don't keep tumbling and keep racking up more energy costs. Dryers are a big energy consumer; save money by using the moisture sensor.

You can save money and conserve energy by simply turning down your hot water heater to 120 degrees. This temperature is hot enough for most household tasks. That drop in temperature can save money and conserve energy, because the tank won't be on as often or need to reach as high a temperature.

A hot water tank insulation blanket is also advisable. If your hot water tank is warm to the touch, or if your tank resides in an unheated garage, an insulation blanket can save both energy and money.

Washing your clothes with cold water has great savings potential. It doesn't require heating hot water, and this conserves energy and saves money. With the detergents designed for washing clothing in cold water, you can still get your clothing clean and smelling fresh. In addition, washing and drying full loads, rather than partial loads, adds to the savings.

Conserve Energy with Electronics

Many electronics continue to use energy--even when turned off. Lighted dials sap energy. If every homeowner cut the power to electronics not in use, imagine the savings worldwide. This tip can save energy and save money.

Conserve Energy in the Kitchen

When you cook on the stovetop, match the size of your pan to the size of the burner. Use a toaster oven or crock pot, rather than the oven for small portions. Use the size of appliance that fits your needs. Furthermore, if you place lids on your pans, you can reduce top-of-the-stove cooking time.

Conserve Energy in Lighting

If you can set timers on your lights, lights won't be on at times when they're not necessary. Motion detectors that shut off and compact florescent bulbs are also big energy savers. Another way to save on lighting in the home is to open the curtains and lift the shades. Natural light is free.

Conserve Energy in Heating and Cooling

Just as you can open curtains for light, you can close them to cut out heat. In hot months, keeping the heat of the sun's rays out of your home saves power with your air conditioner or with fans. This saves energy and saves money.

Consider the use of weather stripping around doors and windows to get rid of drafts. Also consider insulating attics, walls, basements, and floors. The energy savings will be big and in the end, it saves money.

Turn your thermostat down one degree, and consider using a programmable thermostat. That one degree adds up. Furthermore, when you're not home, why heat the home? A programmable thermostat can save home heating costs and conserve energy.

Check your duct work for leaks and for ineffectiveness. Seal those air leaks in attics and crawlspaces where heat energy is being lost from your home. In addition, clean out your furnace filters and air conditioner filters. This simple task done monthly, can really cut annual energy bills.

With these tips for saving energy and saving money on home energy bills, you can make a difference environmentally and in your pocketbook. Why not make some energy consumption changes in and around your home today?