10 Simple Ways to Save Money on Your Electricity Bill

Everyone loves saving money, especially when it comes to those pesky monthly bills. Cutting down your energy costs does not have to be complicated. Implementing simple changes in your electricity use can shave hundreds off your annual electricity costs. Read on to find out what you should stop doing if you want to reduce your energy costs and your home’s carbon footprint too.

Simple Changes to Save on Your Electric Bill

Replace incandescent light bulbs with halogen bulbs or LEDs. Traditional incandescent light bulbs rely on wire filaments. Each time the light is switched on or off, the filament grows weaker. Over time, the filament will break, causing the bulb to stop working. Replace old incandescent with energy-efficient light bulbs such as halogen bulbs or LEDs. These can last up to twenty-five times longer than incandescent lights, and they use up to 80% less energy.
Turn the lights off!. Everyone knows one of the easiest ways to save money on your electric bill is to not waste electricity. If you leave the lights on when you leave a room or the house, you are throwing precious money away. Be proactive about turning the lights off when you leave a room, and do not leave any lights on when you leave the house.
Unplug unnecessary items. If you are not using an appliance, do not leave it plugged in. Any accessory that is plugged into a wall still uses electricity even when it is not being used. This includes device chargers, lamps, small appliances, and virtually anything else that relies on electricity. Unplug that toaster and blender that isn't being used!
Clean the link out of the dryer. At first glance, this change may seem so small and insignificant that it won’t make much of a difference. While it won’t save you hundreds each year, but it can help you save up to $25. Plus, your clothes will dry faster if you clean out the lint after each load of laundry.
Turn off the desktop computer at night. Computer gurus may tell you that it’s healthier to leave your desktop in sleep mode when you’re not using it. While this is designed to save power, the computer will still use a lot of power if left on 24/7. When you are finished using the computer, shutting it down will save power costs.
Upgrade those old appliances. That trusty fridge might have been with you since college, but if it is not Energy Star certified, it is costing you extra money to run each month. Energy Star appliances use less electricity and can save you up to $600 per year on your energy costs. Just look for the blue Energy Star symbol on the appliance you are shopping for.
Make sure your home has up to date insulation. If your house is a little drafty, you may want to inspect your windows. At the very least, you should ensure all your windows are properly insulated. Single-pane windows can reduce energy efficiency by as much as 20%. Energy-efficient windows can provide extra insulation and protection from the sun’s harmful UV rays, helping you better regulate your heating and cooling costs.
Replace your old water heater. Outdated water heaters can drain power by heating up all the available water at once and keeping it hot throughout the day. Energy-efficient and tankless water heaters heat water while it is being used, which can improve your energy efficiency by 20%. Switching out your water heater can put an extra $100 back in your pocket each year. Energy-efficient water heaters will also have the blue Energy Star label.
Minimally run your space heater or air conditioner. During the extremes of summer and winter, temperature regulators like space heaters and air conditioners can be a godsend. Unfortunately, they’re also notorious for draining power, so they should be used sparingly. Open the windows early in the morning during the summer months, and bundle up during the winter months when possible.
Don't play the guessing game on your electricity costs. If you are concerned about how much electricity you use, you need to educate yourself on your electricity habits. Thanks to the advent of smart devices, there are tools out there to help you monitor your electricity use in real-time. Smart power meters can tell you exactly how much power your house is using, while other monitors can even provide you with a room-by-room usage report. These monitors tend to be on the expensive side. However, knowing exactly how much electricity you are using at any given moment can help you save hundreds each year.

If you want to save some money on electricity costs, you have two options. You can implement small, simple changes around the house, or you can upgrade your old appliances so you are not paying extra money each month to run the same appliance. For maximum savings, you should do a little bit of both.

Making large-scale changes will result in large-scale rewards. By upgrading your windows and appliances, you might save as much as $1,000 per year or more on your electric bill. If you are not in a position to replace your appliances, that is okay, too. Turning off the lights and unplugging unused items can still save you $200 or more each year.

How can Great Pros Help?

Great Pros connects homeowners with licensed, bonded, and insured professionals for all their home projects. We have multiple electricians who are readily available to help you with any job that would want to tackle. We also have hundreds of handymen, painters, plumbers, landscapers, etc. to help with any job.