Saving energy equals saving money and there are hundreds of ways to do your part. I will give you just a few ways that I have found to be easy, inexpensive and in return will save you money. By changing the light bulbs in your house to compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) you can save about $45 in electricity cost per light bulb annually. The average home has roughly 15 active light bulbs and if homeowners were to change every light in their house to CFL bulbs, they would save about $675 in electricity costs during the life of these light bulbs. Shading can save up to 40% of cooling costs. Planting trees in strategic areas of your yard will not only increase the value of your home but will also save about $100 – $250 a year in energy costs.
Thinking of buying a new washing machine? If you replace a washing machine that is older than 1994, you will save up to $110 a year on your utility bill. When you buy an appliance, Energy Star approved, that item can save you up to 50% than on non-Energy Star approved appliances. Newer washers will not only save energy but will also conserve water as well. Other ways to conserve water is by changing your shower head. For an investment of $10 or less you can save $50 to $75 per year on water bills and $20 to $50 more per year on energy bills (depending on your current shower head and utility rates). Every new shower head should pay for itself within the first year.
New homes have been being built green to reduce their carbon footprint for some time now, but if you need help maximizing your energy efficiency you can call your local energy provider and they will often send an expert out to help you coordinate your energy saving efforts, usually for free. These experts will perform various tests such as a thermo graphic scan to find out if there are any air leaks into your home, a combustion safety test to determine how safely your heating system is working, a blower door test to find out how airtight your home is and so on. Pin pointing exactly where you are producing the most heat, leads your AC unit to run longer. They will also go through your past utility bills to check your energy consumption levels.
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A great way to add value and energy savings to an older home is to improve the insulation and install new energy saving windows-at re-sell time you will more than get your money back by having those upgrades done.
Scott – Great tip
Valuable tips indeed. Little things and hacks in our home can save a lot in long term. Also we are not just saving the money, but we are saving our environment.
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I think it is great the green thing has finally caught on. The list could go on and on for energy saving tips, but I think most people are willing or can only afford to spend so much going green. However, if we all did those small things we could make a huge difference.
Great, timely post. While homeowners might be averse to spending money in this economy, a little money upfront can save a lot down the line–and help the environment too.
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Here is a good environment post by my friend Pixelhead… stop by and check it out.
We replaced our washer last year with new front loading one. I love it. Saves us money on our dryer too because it spins out a lot more of the water. If the average home owner just did one thing a year it would pay for itself.
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Many home builders in my area actually install CFLs in their model homes to show the public that they’re also onboard with the “Green” movement. Plus these days, everyone’s looking to save a few dollars here and there.
Great post.
There are water harvesting systems now that not only collect rainwater but make it available to use for flushing the toilet and water for the washing machine.
I must say that going green is the way to go. I have changed all my light bulbs to the CFLs and have also purchased a new washing machine. Although I did not see a drastic change in my monthly bill, I know that I am saving money in the long run.
I need to live a little Greener. We dont really try. My Wife fills the recyle bin with trash. We got a letter stating we shouldnt be doing this.
There are a lot of small things that can be done around the house that add up big savings on energy bills. I’ve noticed a huge savings alone in just changing my lights to CFL’s. Another good idea is to turn your heat down at night or while nobody is home. There are many programmable units these days that can do this automatically for you.
I have a website with a “Build Green” page. It gives some great resources on how to reduce your energy costs and your impact on the environment. I hope it helps.
http://www.mvhomebuilders.com/Green_Building.php
Great ideas here. I did some more research on how I can help and found a great video on Howcast http://www.howcast.com/videos/365-How-To-Reduce-Your-Carbon-Footprint
I’ve also heard that getting new seals for your refrigerator can help a lot. These are good tips to save a couple hundred $$$.
Using energy efficient lighting at home can indeed save us more energy and money. Aside from compact florescent lights, I also use LED light bulbs and halogen spotlights at home. They are also energy efficient.
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A great way to add value and energy savings to an older home is to improve the insulation and install new energy saving windows-at re-sell time you will more than get your money back by having those upgrades done
Saving energy is certainly a good way to save money and keep our environment clean. Over the last two years I’ve changed out all of my incandescent light bulbs to compact florescents and all of my appliances are energy star.
There are a lot of things you can do to save energy and money without feeling the pain of sacrafice. A lot of the things you can do really have no negative impact on your life whatsoever and a positive on society as a whole.
Many homes that use combustable appliances can save money by simply having an HVAC technician come out and "tune" up the appliance. When these things are shipped from the manufacture they fall out of calibration and do not come adjusted for elevation. I read on the Energy Star site that a savings up 5% can be achieved by simply calibrating the combustable appliances
In my opinion LED lights are the best. Not only are they super efficient, but the recessed cans can actually be insulated, as a side benefit.
Using these types of energy saving light bulbs is the only way to go. i mean not only do they save you money but they reduce the use of our energy supply. the information you have provided on your site is a must read for anyone looking for creative ways to saving money. Thanks for such a great post.
I had no idea CFL’s saved that much money!Im going to the store tomorrow. Great tips, much appreciated.
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Thats a very good way of going green by making small changes..I will definately promote this whenever required..
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Energy efficent appliance do bring a greener lifestyle but you do have to take steps to make those changes.
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I truly find that being green is the best way to go in life. Buying new appliances will save money as well as help our enviroment.
Here are a couple of quick energy saving tips:
Always use the appropriate water-level setting in relation to the load when using the washing machine.
Cut back or do not use the dishwasher’s drying cycle. Put the washed dishes on dish racks to air dry.
Try alternative sources of energy such as solar panels.
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What a wonderful saving tips. Saving energy is like saving money. We should really use long lasting items like bulbs to conserve our electricity consumption. Thanks for this tips.
I started using solar power materials for my roof, and I noticed a significant saving on electricity. I also like to help the environment too.
In your article you state that you can save about $45 per year per light bulb by changing to Fluorescent lights (CFLs). That doesn’t sound right. Are you sure about that figure?
I did change my entire Indianapolis home to (CFLs) several years ago. However, I’m still having trouble getting used to the light they emit. Some of the newer models allow you to adjust the light levels with a rheostat. Also, you can now buy them in different levels of white light.
@Mike – I have removed the link you added in the comment. It is already a dofollow blog and we find their no need to add an additional link in your comment.
I think that every government institute should use only energy efficient appliances because everyday, official buildings, are going through immense amounts of water and energy…which are payed with our money.
If, for example, there would be only energy CFL bulbs in all governmental buildings, I think the savings will in the millions per year. Money, which could go into the health care system for example.
Everyone should use energy saving light bulbs. They last 10 times longer than ordinary light bulbs.
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Most people don’t see it that way. Until everyone realizes that going green might actually be beneficial, we will continue to waste plenty of money and energy.
Utility bills were what gorged heavily on my monthly budget. After making a few changes, however, I was able to save enough money – just from utilities bills – for a nice trip out of town. Plus, I have more breathing room now when it comes to my finances.
I recently replaced the lights in my home with CFL’s and I got to say it takes some time to get used to. The quality of the light is very different. But I’m doing my part to conserve. Next will be the tankless water heater. Next year.
I realize that when you wrote these tips in late 2008 LEDs were still very expensive, but I think that now they’ve come down enough in price to make them worth using, even in place of CFLs. LEDs use less energy than CFLs, last longer than CFLs and don’t contain mercury like CFLs do, so in my opinion they are the better choice.