Warming Up to a Utility Money-Saving Plan

The utilities

Saving money on utilities has be among the top priorities for most households, since utilities are “must-have” services, but are also some of the highest priced items a family must pay for. Take, for example, heating bills during the late Fall through early Spring period; and electricity (mostly for air conditioning) during the Summer months. These bills can easily fall in the range of $250 to $350 if you own a home.

Expenses on utilities really contribute to most of your household bills, after your mortgage payment and auto expenses, if you drive a car or other type of vehicle; but did you know that you could trim your utility expenses by a considerable amount? Of course, you do need a solid “home energy reduction” plan which must be adhered to. That having been said we have made a few suggestions in the following paragraphs that may help you create such a plan.

Electric & the appliances

Identify which appliances consume high electricity usage and contribute the most in making the electric bill cost that much. You can save hundreds of dollars annually by enrolling in a home management load program that offer a 100-dollar savings in a year on electric utility hourly rate programs. This will help you lower your electric payments and will teach you on home energy conservation.

It is recommended that you have improved appliance efficiency. The heating system appliances are known to consume too much electricity. The refrigerator and the water heater consume that much energy as well. Make sure to check these items regularly to ensure their efficiency. A well-maintained appliance will sustain its performance and will give you it’s accurate use of electricity.

The heating component

Always remember to give your furnace a tune up at least twice a year. You have to cover the water heater to insulate it and give your refrigerator coils a cleaning at least twice a year as well. You may also set a timer for the heater to have regular flow of electricity whenever it is in use. You may call your utility service to check if there is a low rate offered during any specific time of the day.

You may also save money by lowering your heating bills. A good rule of thumb is to set your thermostat down three degrees which would result in a savings of 3 percent off your bills. You may even save more by setting the thermostat at the bare minimum while you are at work; and keep it at a reasonably low temperature during nighttime hours when you are asleep. This can help you conserve heating fuel (oil or gas and many places) and electricity while saving more money.

Phone, water & others

You may want to lessen your long distance telephone calls to lower your telephone bills. If there is a need to call a very important person, you can call during weekends and night hours. Telephone companies offer a lower rate for long distance calls during those times of the day. In order to save money the best alternative is using the Internet to communicate with your friends and relatives instead of the telephone; and if you have access to VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) services, you should use it instead of traditional landlines and slash your phone bill by 70% or more.

You may want to consider lowering your water bills in order to save money. Check if there are leaks so that you can fix them immediately. Another thing you can do is install a water saving showerhead to lessen the use of water when taking a shower. You can use a big container to stock water in the bathroom as an alternative to using the bathroom shower. This might sound a little strange, but it will save money.