easy ways to save money in a tight economy
Some of you recently read my post about the new XCEL Energy 2-tier billing system. So I thought I would write about easy ways to save money in a tight economy:
#1) Start with turning off your AC- this is a HUGE energy waster.
#2) However- if you are like me, and simply can't stand the thought of melting through the summer here is another easy way to save money in a tight economy - STOP USING YOUR DRYER- yes that's right- your dryer is probably costing you about $5.00 every time you put the clothes in there-Actually I just spoke to an engineer who told me that using your dryer is like having all of your lights on all day (in terms of KW hour usage).
#3) Yes- most of us turn off all of our lights after leaving a room etc. but have you ever considered unpluggingyour unused items? I am in the process of doing this experiment just to see how many KW hours I can save. The first step is getting out those old power strips from you Christmas boxes or whatever and yes just go on and plug them in- I am starting with all of my computer electronics as well as TVs and video game equipment. Remember your lights/lamps have an auto shut off so they are not actually drawing poer from your outlets- but items like appliances, computers, electric toothbrushes etc. all draw power from your outlets while not being used.- I find the kitchen to be a bit difficult as I do have to unplug all of those appliances every day (although once I did this, I realized that I mainly use the coffee maker 5 times a day and other than that it's pretty easy to plug and unplug all the other appliances). OK- so once you have this step done, just turn off the power strips daily and voila! Savings! My goal is to see if this will help us save between $50 to $100.00 on my electric bill (my bill last month was a doozie). I will keep you updated on this one.
#4) Other energy bill suckers are water features- yes as lovely as they are water features are like constantly running little motors that really do give you serenity until you get the bill. So if you want another ease way to save money in a tight economy- just unplug that pond, but don't forget to drain it first.
