A typical household can save about $100-$200 a year in heating costs with a programmable thermostat, so how could you afford not to invest in one!! Our programmable thermostat allows us to have the heat automatically turn down or off when we are not home or sleeping, then automatically allow the house to warm up for when we wake up or come home from work. We have noticed a difference right away after installing ours. Our house came with the old mercury type which didn't seem very accurate to me - the furnace would constantly turn on and off, usually 3 times in a row until it took a rest before the house needed heating again. Now the furnace comes on once, and doesn't come back on until needed. Our heating bill from the winter was very comparable to the cost of heating our single wide mobile home that we previously lived in.
Second to the furnace, your hot water tank is another big heating cost. If you have a typical water storage heater like us, you will most likely benefit by using a water heater jacket or blanket. Usually made out of insulated foil, they can be purchased in a kit or you can buy the foil itself and cut it to fit and attach with tape. Don't know if you need one? Touch the side of your hot water tank. Is it warm? If yes, you should invest in a water heater jacket.
The pipe insulation was extremely cheap, and easy to install. Most of our pipework in the basement is exposed, and therefore could probably use some help to keep the heat going to the tap. Since installing both of these insulating items, I have noticed that the hot water heater doesn't kick in as often as before, the hot water comes out of the taps faster, and I was even able to turn the master temperature on the water tank down to factory setting - the water is still boiling hot! (I might just turn it down some more!)
We bought a conversion kit which allows you to turn any toilet into a dual flushing toilet, meaning you can have a half flush for smaller needs, or a full flush for larger ones. This way you don't need to waste a whole tank of water for something that really doesn't need it, which also means you'll be saving water and money in the long run. Remember, you still have to pay for the electricity to pump your water into your house if you're on a well system.
WOW, the new H.E. washer and dryer that we purchased have changed my opinion on doing the laundry! I can't say enough great stuff about the combo that we purchased, I have really fallen in love! The washer is super quiet, fast, and uses very little detergent and water. I actually use natural laundry detergent and vinegar (softener) in it, and it works awesome! During the days that I do have to use my dryer, the clothes are usually dry in about the same time washing a load of laundry, thanks the the amazing spin cycle of the frond load washer. Still, every time you let mother nature dry your clothes, you will also be helping save her. A clothes line or stand is a great investment considering it will pay for itself in a month or less - if you do laundry as often as I do - yet I still have to pop some items back into the dryer for an air fluff (no heat) to remove pet hair.
7. Rain Barrels
Click the link above to bring you to the blog I wrote up about rain barrels not too long ago. These were a great investment! One of the barrels waters one side of the garden and greenhouse, while the other waters the other side of the garden and veggies!
I will admit that ceiling fans are ugly as sin, but we did keep one in our kitchen to help bring up cool air from the basement when the house is hot from the sun. Using an Energy Star rated ceiling fan to redirect air in your home actually works great - if you use them right! When it's hot outside, we keep the fan on low to draw air up from the cool basement. We don't have an air conditioner, because so far we've found that this practice actually works quite well. With the correct insulation, keeping all the curtains closed to the sun during the day, and opening the North side and basement windows at night, we should have no trouble keeping our home cool when it gets hot outside buy just moving the air around properly. This summer will be the true test, and so far its been quite mild. But, on the few hot days we've had, I have successfully been able to keep the house cooler than outside by using my ceiling fan/window method.
Also, If you have high ceilings in your home, and find it hard to keep heating costs low in the winter, you can use ceiling fans to redirect the warm rising air back down into your living space.
9. Compost
I've never composted before in my life, and then I realized that all the food I was throwing away could have been turned into compost - and when you have a garden or even house plants, free compost is a money saver! Instead of throwing away my veggie and fruit cuttings into the garbage, I keep an old pot near the kitchen where I can easily toss the food until its brought outside and added to the compost bin. Now instead of filing up my garbage, I use less garbage bags, which equals less trips to the dump, which equals less time my vehicle is on the road. I watched a few videos to learn more about the how, what and why of composting. It's actually quite simple, and its hard to believe that I never did this before! I suggest that everyone start a compost pile, and watch these videos for great tips and tricks!
After we moved in, we changed out every single possible light bulb with a CFL or halogen bulb, and invested in LED Christmas lights and Solar LED outdoor lighting. At first I was skeptical about buying LED Christmas lights because of the initial cost. But after buying cheap Christmas lights from Wal-Mart and having 10% of them burn out in the same year... the math only made sense. Same with the investment in the CFL's - not to mention the money and energy saved running them. I found some nice bright 23W soft light CFL's (equal to 60W incandescent bulb) that don't have a "wait" or "warm up time" when you switch them on, they work great! Our electrical bill is no more than a 2 bedroom apartment I used to live in, which has got to say something about the energy we are saving! Check out this little clip about CFL's vs. incandescent lighting.
Also, who doesn't want to light their patio or porch for practically nothing by using solar powered lights! Check out the solar lights we used on our front deck here!
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