Reducing Energy Costs

Our utility bills have continued to go down despite rising costs. Every time we add a new way to lower energy use, the bills reflects the change in a big way.

One huge help this winter was purchasing one of those fake fireplace heaters. We actually got it free with Discover Card point gift certificates at Ace Hardware. I kept lowering the thermostat all winter long. I was surprised to get to 58 degrees, and still not be too cold! As long as we closed the doors to the room, that little heater really warmed up our living area. We live coastal southern Virginia, so it doesn't get super cold, although it has been known to snow from time to time. We can get some biting wind chills as well.

Other things that have helped were a new insulated garage door two years ago, and a new insulated front door the year before that. Last year, we purchased an energy star dishwasher with an eco wash mode. Just these few things have saved us hundreds of dollars.

Our summers are very hot and humid, and we get some really hot western sun exposure along the front of the house. About two years ago, I planted a Japanese cherry tree in front of the house, as close to the windows as I could get it. It has finally grown taller, and I'm hoping this makes a difference with the heat. Thankfully, Lola just posted about a window film, Gila platinum film from Home Depot, that you can add to your windows to make them more energy efficient by cutting down on heat. We'll be trying this as well. We already have heavy insulated drapes and sheers in those rooms. I figure a combination of remedies will work best.

Little things we do around the house are to use power strips for the electronics which still use energy when turned off, anything which has a little standby light on it like televisions, VCRS, and DVD players. At night I go around turning off the strips which saves a bit. We've switched to CFL bulbs, and turn off lights in rooms we are not using. We line dry, even in the winter, so the dryer rarely gets used.

Heavy insulated drapes and fans work wonders in our house to control temperatures. I love finding those old J.C. Penney drapes with the heavy plastic backing at the thrifts. I've done three rooms with these for under $30.00. You can also purchase room darkener linings just like the ones used in hotels. I found mine at Walmart. The Roc-lon drapes do double duty as window insulation.

What's next? I'd like to replace the 13 year old water heater when it goes with a tankless version. Someday we'll get some energy efficient windows...maybe in about five years when the mortgage is paid off.

It's fun to look back. Here's an old post from 2006, Making it on One Income. Everything is pretty much the same, except I now use mostly organic cleaners, and I have a new mop. We have also reduced the temperature on the thermostat. I see that in 2006, 64 degrees(winter) was the lowest we could stand. We've been able to turn down the thermostat down six degrees since then.

Some helpful tips over at DIY Instructables:


100 Ways to Reduce Your Impact - More DIY How To Projects