The cost of energy keeps rising and I don't know about you, but I am alwalys looking for ideas to save my money. Below are a few examples I use.

Watch your Kilo-watts and be a Saver

This is very easy, establish a spreadsheet in excel and track your Kilo-watt usage every month. Saving electricity takes  time to get used to, but it is all in your habits. First a formost turn off the lights when you leave a room. Turning things off when not in use can save alot on your electric bill. Your computer, printer, modem, satellite dish, DVD, Flat Screen TV and other electronic devices use electricity even when they are switched off. You must unplug them from the outlet or they will continue to burn your money. If you have allot of devices in one spot, hook them up to one power strip, I have hooked up my washing machine & dryer, computer, TV's, Stero, and PS2 & Wii. I also unplug my toaster and microwave when not in use. This has saved me over $45 a month. (Extra freezers or refrigerators in the garage need to be undated to Energy Star.) These appliances can add 10-30% to your electric bill.

If you have the extra cash

An upgrade to using CFL’s and more expensive is LED Lighting. I currently use LED’s in our laundry room; we like the clean look of the light and of course the savings. LED is like a 3 watt bulb vs. a 13 watt bulb CFL. LED lights use 1/10th the energy when compared to normal incandescent lights, this is a direct energy savings.

The lifespan of LED lighting is approximately 28,000 hours (6-8 years of normal use); ten times as long as the incandescent light bulb and 6 times longer than a compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL). This means less money replacing bulbs in the future.

Another plus is LED lights emit less heat making your home safer and cooler in the summer.

There are a couple of drawbacks when using LED lighting. They typically are in an “on” or “off” state, so using a dimmer control in not very effective. Dimmer switches are available, but are expensive. I could not justify the cost of for my house, so on two sets of lights with dimmer switches I either use the dimmer to reduce amount used or I must remember to turn them off when not in use. Perhaps technology will improve to make this feature less expensive and readily available.

The initial cost can be up to ten times the cost of an incandescent bulb and five times the cost of a compact fluorescent bulb (CFL). That is why I buy only  However, I believe the upfront cost is worth it when you consider the energy savings which you will see on your electric bill and the time replacing bulbs. As LED lighting use grows in popularity, competition in the market and improved technology should bring prices down.

So should you use LED’s? Well, I have decide to purchase a couple every three months since they are expensive, but if I can use 3 watts of power vs. 60 watts (incandescent light) or 13 watts (CFL) I would.

Use a power strip on your washer and dryer, make sure it is always clean and does not just hang in the back to collect dust or get wet. I did this back in October, and my meter slowed way down. I figure I save about $8 a month just on this idea.

I just installed a LED porch light in November, went from 13 watts to 1.5 watts, it takes a min for the light to warm up, but I like this idea. 

Keep coming back to this page for future updates on how I have reduced my utility bills.

This page is dedicated to helping you save money each month. I have spent alot of time reading, looking for ways on how to save my money. But they must be easy to do with little investment needed. Well, there is no quick fix, but each of these ideas will save you money.  

The first and most talked about way to save money, energy and the environment is to replace your traditional  incandescent light bulbs with an equivalent 13-watt compact fluorescent light  (CFL) bulb. I now consider this a short term strategy just because you see a savings within two months. I have been tracking for more than two years, but I still must be aware to turn off the power when not in use. Keep up a good habit of turn stuff off and it starts to become second nature. That sounds like my parents, but I am saving about $12 a month just on this idea. I buy the GE CFL Light Bulb 13 Watt (60 watt Equilvant), 12 per pack at Wal-Mart for about $19.76, by the 2nd month was saving money.

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