While most electric companies try to pressure us to find ways to spend less and use less, it turns out that the companies themselves are the ones wasting money. However, if you want to ensure that you’re able to save money and lessen your carbon footprint, there are some clever electricity hacks that you should know. Every homeowner should find ways to cut corners on cost whenever possible.
Here are four electricity hacks that you should make to save some money this year.
1. Fix Your Windows
If you’re worried about the cost of electricity in your home, your windows are going to be a constant pain in the neck. All year round, you’ll be struggling to get your windows to keep your warm or cool air in, even if you’ve got brand new panes. The windows in your home are built so that they can easily open and close, meaning they’ve got cracks and gaps built right into them.
The best thing you can do during the winter is to cover them with plastic to ensure that you don’t lose any temperature from a draft that finds its way in. While this isn’t the most attractive solution, it’s a good way to ensure that you’re able to add space between the inside and outside. Use tape that’s safe for your paint job while strong enough to seal tightly.
The only issue is that if you’re using your windows for sunlight, you’re not going to get quite as much from these covered windows. However, if your main concern is the cost of heating or cooling your home, it could be worth it to go this route.
Draft stoppers are a great tool for ensuring that you keep drafts out from under your doors to complement your window work. You can even use draft stoppers at your windows.
2. Make Your Freezer More Efficient
Every time you open your freezer, you’re putting a few cents into the bank account of your electric company. That air that your freezer works hard to make super cold is going to leak out and need to be replenished. The more air you let out, the more air your freezer is forced to produce.
However, you can prevent problems with your freezer or from losing air by packing it much tighter. Even just bags of ice to take up empty space can help you to get more out of your freezer’s work. When your freezer is tightly packed and keeping your cold air in, you’ll use less electricity and save money.
You can even get more out of your refrigerator or freezer when you buy something that’s high-efficiency. A fridge that puts efficiency first is going to save you a lot of money every single month. As it works less to stay cool and keeps the cold air circulating, you’ll spend less.
While it takes a lot more energy to keep things cold during the summer, you could save money in the winter by turning the temperature down on your fridge or freezer. The more you allow the weather to compensate, the more you’ll save. Keep your frozen foods in your garage and you can keep the temperature down as the naturally cool and dark environment assists it.
3. Skip The Dryer
If you travel around Europe looking for a place to dry your clothes, you might be surprised to find that most homes have just a washer. It’s so standard to just hang dry clothes that it seems odd for so many American homes to use a dryer. Even having one in your home seems decadent and like a waste of natural resources, even to people who aren’t environmentally conscious.
Washing machines have been a modern convenience from the moment the technology was available to create one. Dryers, on the other hand, are far less vital. If you want to keep your clothes dry and cut down on your electricity greatly, then take advantage of warm air or direct sunlight.
Homes that have an outdoor porch or a space outside that gets direct sunlight every day could save money by air drying clothes. The best way to save money on electricity when you have a family with domestic needs like constant laundry is to hang dry clothes.
Get the whole family into the habit of hanging clothing on an outdoor line and you’ll be able to add to the chores you can assign to kids.
4. Change Your Bulbs
One of the easiest ways for you to save money on your electric bill from day to day is to change the way that you light your home. When you switch out standard incandescent bulbs for CFLs or LEDs, you drop down the cost of running them by half or more.
As compact fluorescents become much easier to find, you’ll be able to light your home easily for less. Where once you needed to go to specialty shops for these bulbs, they’re now found just about everywhere. It’s even harder to find an incandescent bulb now.
There are even outdoor lights that are powered by solar cells. While you might not be ready to make the leap to lighting your home with solar power, check the solar power pros and cons before you decide.
Electricity Hacks Are Everywhere
From changing your daily behavior to changing the hours that you use appliances, you could be performing electricity hacks daily. All you have to do is to be willing to change a little bit to save some money.
If you want to understand how you could save money, check out our guide to how a fridge works.
