In today's modern economic climate, now has never been a better time to start saving money, and where better to start than at home? Millions of pounds are poured down the drain by millions of households every year. By committing yourself to making a few small changes you could save yourself hundreds every year.
o Use energy saving light bulbs. Energy saving light bulbs may stand on the shelves slightly more expensive than normal bulbs, but can last up to ten times longer and use less electricity. Also, whenever you are not using a room, switch the lights off. This may seem pretty obvious, but only lighting the room you're in can significantly lower your energy bills.
o Don't be fooled by standby. When you leave electrical appliances on standby, they are still consuming electricity at an extremely high rate, considering the appliance is switched off. If you unplug all of your electrical appliances when they're not in use, you could save up to £40 per year on your electricity bill.
o Do a cool wash. Around 80% of the energy used to wash a pile of clothes is used to heat up the water. If you wash your clothes at a lower temperature, this means you are using less electricity.
o Turn down your heating. We all like our homes nice and toasty in the winter, but by turning your heating down by just one degree can cut your heating bill by 10%- and you won't even feel the difference.
o Insulate your hot water tank. A cover for your tank will not cost much, and could significantly contain more heat than a tank that is not covered. By covering the tank with a jacket that is more than 3 inches thick, you could save up to £30 per year.
Compare energy providers to make sure you aren't paying too much for your energy bills. Compare gas and compare electricity and you could potentially save up to £300 by switching to a cheaper supplier.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rachael_A_Miller
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
Monday, 19 April 2010
How to Lower Electric Bill in 10 Easy Ways
Electric bills make up most of the monthly bills in households. This is even more so with large homes or when there are multiple residents living in the house. Families are trying out more and more ways to lower electric bill. So they can use the money they will save for more important things. A lower electric bill also indicates that you are helping the environment by using up less energy.
Just follow these tips to lower electric bill:
1. When not in use, turn off lights. The savings might be small initially, but it will all add up to huge savings in the long run. In this way, you are also not wasting precious energy.
2. Do regular maintenance with the air conditioning units. Dirty filters mean that your air conditioning unit has to work harder to keep you cooler and it has to consume more energy than necessary.
3. Have your dripping or leaking faucets fixed. These drips mean that you are wasting water and your pump is working extra to replace the water. If the faucet is dripping hot water then your hot water heater is also performing unnecessary work.
4. Go for appliances that are good for the environment and are energy efficient. You can have your pick of energy saving appliances in any store. More and more people are becoming self-aware about the planet?s plight. Ask the salesman in the appliance store if they carry energy efficient appliances.
5. Unless it is necessary, don't use electrical appliances. Even though they are energy efficient, they still eat up energy. When you have to use the clothes dryer, make sure there is a full load so you can use it to its full advantage. And if it is a breezy day, you can just air dry your clothes.
6. Keep drafts from getting in your home. Check windows or openings for drafts. When you do find drafts, look for ways to cover them up. When there are drafts, the air that you are paying to keep cool or hot could leave the house.
7. When washing, do only full loads. Do not use the dishwasher or clothes dryer unless you have a full load to put in. Two small loads will cost twice as much as a single full load. You might as well wait until you have a full load to do.
8. Use timers for your air conditioning unit and thermostats. If you have one of those programmable thermostats, you can program it lower during colder months and higher during hotter months. This way your air conditioning unit or heater won?t have to consume so much energy.
9. Make use of natural light as much as possible. If there is still sunlight that can be used then you shouldn't turn on the lights in your house. A few hours with your lights turned off could mean hundreds of dollars in savings for you in the long run.
10. Use solar power and other homemade energy. Homemade energy is a growing fad among American homes these days. You can harness the power of nature into producing energy for you. This can be done through solar panels and wind mills. It will lower electric bill in your home.
Discover new ways to save on your electricity bills! Lower electricity bill by using home solar energy system.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Daniel_Shermann
Just follow these tips to lower electric bill:
1. When not in use, turn off lights. The savings might be small initially, but it will all add up to huge savings in the long run. In this way, you are also not wasting precious energy.
2. Do regular maintenance with the air conditioning units. Dirty filters mean that your air conditioning unit has to work harder to keep you cooler and it has to consume more energy than necessary.
3. Have your dripping or leaking faucets fixed. These drips mean that you are wasting water and your pump is working extra to replace the water. If the faucet is dripping hot water then your hot water heater is also performing unnecessary work.
4. Go for appliances that are good for the environment and are energy efficient. You can have your pick of energy saving appliances in any store. More and more people are becoming self-aware about the planet?s plight. Ask the salesman in the appliance store if they carry energy efficient appliances.
5. Unless it is necessary, don't use electrical appliances. Even though they are energy efficient, they still eat up energy. When you have to use the clothes dryer, make sure there is a full load so you can use it to its full advantage. And if it is a breezy day, you can just air dry your clothes.
6. Keep drafts from getting in your home. Check windows or openings for drafts. When you do find drafts, look for ways to cover them up. When there are drafts, the air that you are paying to keep cool or hot could leave the house.
7. When washing, do only full loads. Do not use the dishwasher or clothes dryer unless you have a full load to put in. Two small loads will cost twice as much as a single full load. You might as well wait until you have a full load to do.
8. Use timers for your air conditioning unit and thermostats. If you have one of those programmable thermostats, you can program it lower during colder months and higher during hotter months. This way your air conditioning unit or heater won?t have to consume so much energy.
9. Make use of natural light as much as possible. If there is still sunlight that can be used then you shouldn't turn on the lights in your house. A few hours with your lights turned off could mean hundreds of dollars in savings for you in the long run.
10. Use solar power and other homemade energy. Homemade energy is a growing fad among American homes these days. You can harness the power of nature into producing energy for you. This can be done through solar panels and wind mills. It will lower electric bill in your home.
Discover new ways to save on your electricity bills! Lower electricity bill by using home solar energy system.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Daniel_Shermann
Sunday, 18 April 2010
Can You Really Cut Down on Household Bills?
Have you ever sat down and added up what all your household bills actually come to? If you have, you will know just how frighteningly large that amount can be! Of course, some items such as council tax for example cannot be changed. You can get a reduction on your bill if you live alone, but other than that most of us simply have to pay the amount we are charged.
Fortunately we have much more control over some other bills. Take our phone bill, electricity bill and gas bill, for example. We can do a lot to make sure we spend less on these than we are doing now. It just takes a little bit of effort to get the right end results. But that effort is generally worth it. So where do you start?
The best thing to do is to take out some bills for the last few months, so you can get an idea of what you are actually paying each month. It is always better to pay bills monthly if you can; any less often than that and you can struggle to find the money each time. Keeping the bills small, regular and manageable is the first step to making them easier to pay.
The next task is to look at which provider you are with for each service. It is very easy to stay with the same one for a prolonged period of time - long after they remain the cheapest service to be with.
You can check online by using a comparison service to find the cheapest provider in many cases. But there may be other alternatives available too. For example, when it comes to your phone bill you might be able to use your mobile more cheaply than your home phone. Two people who are on the same tariff and use the same provider are often able to call each other for free at certain times.
The same applies to calls that can be made over the internet. Would this be a good way for you to keep in touch with people while reducing the cost of your phone bills? Make sure you consider all the options and choose the best one for your own circumstances.
As you can see, it is very easy to reduce bills if you just put a little work in every now and again to achieve those ends. It pays to check how much you are paying from time to time, in order to ensure you are still with the best provider. So regardless of whether you want cheap calls, smaller gas bills or anything in between, remember that you can make changes; but it's up to you to do it.
Daniel Collins writes on a number of topics on behalf of a digital marketing agency and a variety of clients. As such, this article is to be considered a professional piece with business interests in mind.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Daniel_Collins
Fortunately we have much more control over some other bills. Take our phone bill, electricity bill and gas bill, for example. We can do a lot to make sure we spend less on these than we are doing now. It just takes a little bit of effort to get the right end results. But that effort is generally worth it. So where do you start?
The best thing to do is to take out some bills for the last few months, so you can get an idea of what you are actually paying each month. It is always better to pay bills monthly if you can; any less often than that and you can struggle to find the money each time. Keeping the bills small, regular and manageable is the first step to making them easier to pay.
The next task is to look at which provider you are with for each service. It is very easy to stay with the same one for a prolonged period of time - long after they remain the cheapest service to be with.
You can check online by using a comparison service to find the cheapest provider in many cases. But there may be other alternatives available too. For example, when it comes to your phone bill you might be able to use your mobile more cheaply than your home phone. Two people who are on the same tariff and use the same provider are often able to call each other for free at certain times.
The same applies to calls that can be made over the internet. Would this be a good way for you to keep in touch with people while reducing the cost of your phone bills? Make sure you consider all the options and choose the best one for your own circumstances.
As you can see, it is very easy to reduce bills if you just put a little work in every now and again to achieve those ends. It pays to check how much you are paying from time to time, in order to ensure you are still with the best provider. So regardless of whether you want cheap calls, smaller gas bills or anything in between, remember that you can make changes; but it's up to you to do it.
Daniel Collins writes on a number of topics on behalf of a digital marketing agency and a variety of clients. As such, this article is to be considered a professional piece with business interests in mind.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Daniel_Collins
Thursday, 8 April 2010
Electricity Savings
Electricity Savings, Environment and Money Friendly Option
Saving electricity helps in substantial reduction in the electricity bills and also helps save environment. For a home user, the electricity bills are mainly driven by air conditioning and heating systems. If you are interested in electricity savings, it is better to focus on tips to reduce energy consumption of these gadgets and appliances. Other electricity using appliances are water heaters, washing machines, refrigerators that can have considerable participation in heavier electricity bills.
The best way to save electricity is to switch off entertainment gadgets when not in use. It is a common tendency to leave television sets, monitors, computers in standby mode. Most of these gadgets and devices use almost 90% of electricity even in standby mode. It really pays to switch off devices when not in use. Replace incandescent light bulbs with CFL or the most efficient LED lights. Microwave ovens heat up quick and are ideal for reheating and cooking smaller quantities of food. Though it consumes more power during operation, it can be termed as an electricity conservation appliance as it compensates the electricity used by heating in very less time.
Buying energy efficient goods is another way of saving electricity. Though energy efficient appliances cost more initially, money saved through lesser electricity bills works out more beneficial in the long run. Moreover, energy efficient models are superior in technology and have longer life than the other models. Accumulated dust is another important factor to be aware of when we talk about energy conservation and electricity savings. Dust makes the appliances work harder and can increase the electricity bills by 25%. It is important to be knowledgeable about potential electricity hogs to save on electricity bills.
Electricity savings is a sure method of saving money. Explore more on various ways of saving electricity through alternate methods and simple tips and tricks. Energy savings is a practice and achievable by every individual interested in saving money through electricity use.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Angellina_Williams
Saving electricity helps in substantial reduction in the electricity bills and also helps save environment. For a home user, the electricity bills are mainly driven by air conditioning and heating systems. If you are interested in electricity savings, it is better to focus on tips to reduce energy consumption of these gadgets and appliances. Other electricity using appliances are water heaters, washing machines, refrigerators that can have considerable participation in heavier electricity bills.
The best way to save electricity is to switch off entertainment gadgets when not in use. It is a common tendency to leave television sets, monitors, computers in standby mode. Most of these gadgets and devices use almost 90% of electricity even in standby mode. It really pays to switch off devices when not in use. Replace incandescent light bulbs with CFL or the most efficient LED lights. Microwave ovens heat up quick and are ideal for reheating and cooking smaller quantities of food. Though it consumes more power during operation, it can be termed as an electricity conservation appliance as it compensates the electricity used by heating in very less time.
Buying energy efficient goods is another way of saving electricity. Though energy efficient appliances cost more initially, money saved through lesser electricity bills works out more beneficial in the long run. Moreover, energy efficient models are superior in technology and have longer life than the other models. Accumulated dust is another important factor to be aware of when we talk about energy conservation and electricity savings. Dust makes the appliances work harder and can increase the electricity bills by 25%. It is important to be knowledgeable about potential electricity hogs to save on electricity bills.
Electricity savings is a sure method of saving money. Explore more on various ways of saving electricity through alternate methods and simple tips and tricks. Energy savings is a practice and achievable by every individual interested in saving money through electricity use.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Angellina_Williams
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