Thrifty Thursday - Lower Energy Use

This week for my Thrifty Thursday post, I'm talking about tips and ideas to keep your electric and utility bills a little lower this winter and beyond.

Consider purchasing a toaster oven, either new or second hand, for baking or warming up smaller items. Of course if you have a larger family, it might not be an option, but making items such as breadsticks, etc in the toaster oven is nearly half the cost of cooking it in the oven for us. I can actually make a regular size DiGiornio pizza in ours, so take a look at the models available if purchasing new. (Of course, I always vote checking out Craigslist or Freecycle in your area first!) During winter months, when you're done cooking, leave the oven door open to let the heat escape and keep your kitchen warmer! (Why waste it?)

If your electric company offers an off peak hours discount, take advantage of it! It usually runs from 9 PM to 7 AM. This is when you should be re-charging cell phones, etc.

It may be the subject of many jokes, but consider the idea of the "clapper" for turning items on and off in your home, if you have a habit of forgetting to turn things off before you get comfortable in bed or the sofa. (A caveat: loud noises such as bangs, can sometimes be mistaken for the clapping noise by the device. Remember this during some movies, or if your kids have certain loud toys!)

Keep the doors closed to rooms not in use. Close the heating/cooling vents to empty rooms, or rooms that don't have a lot of traffic. For most homes, the rooms with the most traffic are family rooms, the kitchen, and the bathroom nearest these rooms.

Instead of turning on the entire heating system to the house, consider a small radiator in the room being used the most. If your kids are sitting in the living room playing or watching TV all afternoon, there's no reason to have the heat going in the whole house when it's in the 40's outside. (Tip: small plastic play yards can be placed around the heater at a safe distance to keep kids from touching it) This is what we use:


I actually purchased this radiator on sale at the start of the cold season at Fred Meyer for just $24.99. I think we've shaved a good third of our electric heating costs down by using it. Bonus is that it is easily moved from room to room as we need it (let it cool before touching it, even if it does have wheels and a spot you can grab to pull it)

While I know many people will say CFLs will save money, and they will, one thing I want to point out is that in winter, the light from them is usually not bright enough. If the only light you have comes from the ceiling, consider a lamp or two to use instead, so you have the light right where you are reading or working.

If everyone is gone during weekday daytime hours, consider turning off the hot water after the last shower of the morning, and turning it back on when you get home from work or after school activities. Some hot water heaters can have a timer attached to them if your are forgetful (like me! lol)

In the same vein as above: have a programmable thermostat installed. Turn the heat down a little at night or when you are gone! (Be careful not to have it turned off completely when you are near freezing temperatures, or you could end up with frozen or burst pipes!!)

Use heavier curtains and draperies in the winter months to keep the heat in, and the cold outside. Lined draperies work well for this! Also consider window insulation kits - even if it's just covering the seams.

Make sure the filters on your furnace is changed or cleaned regularly - once a month during when you're using it daily!