How to Help Cut Your Electric Bills
Filed Under Blog, Portland, Vancouver · Tagged: Housing Market, Portland Homes, Relocation, Vancouver
When Mom used to tell you to turn out the lights, she was thinking of saving energy dollars. Rarely have Moms words of wisdom been as fitting as they are now. You can cut some of your lighting costs by simply switching to a different light bulb. Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) are much more efficient than incandescent bulbs and last six to 10 times longer, however they are a little higher in costs.
Consider the following:
Besides switching off lights, there are several other painless methods to conserve energy and save money on your electric bills.
*Plug-ins:
Look for those electronic devices, especially those with digital time and date displays that are hardly ever used, like alarm clocks, TVs and VCRs that may be in a guest room, or in the garage, and unplug them. Unplug devices used to recharge electronics/batteries when they’re not being used. Many types of transformers consume energy. Consider unplugging devices like calculators that are not in use.
*Appliances:
Wait until you can fill up your dishwasher before running it. And if you have a heated-dry option, switch it off. Prop open the door a bit after the cycle is completed to air dry your load.
If you have an electric cook-top, turn the burners off a few minutes before the allotted cooking time. The heating element will stay hot long enough to finish the cooking without using more electricity.
*Refrigerators:
Refrigerators use more power than any other appliance in the home and deserve special attention. Although rushing out to buy a new refrigerator may not be in your budget, it is important to know that new models are more efficient and use as little as half the electricity of older units. Full refrigerators run more efficiently than ones that are only partially full. So buy more food and save some energy. Make sure the refrigerator door seals are tight. Do routine cleaning of the coils.
*Lighting:
Its obvious, but true: Turn off lights that are not being used.
Consider installing timers or photo cells on some lights. And instead of constantly nagging the kids, try occupancy/motion detector sensors that turn on and off automatically when someone enters or leaves a room.
These are just some things that can contribute to cutting overall energy costs.
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