Laurel of Leaves

getting back to my roots: my journey in true health and natural living

Musings, Urban Homesteading

20 Simple Ways to Save Money on Your Utility Bill

April 16, 2012

This post is #2 in the Growing Green series in honor of Earth Day on April 22. You can find other great posts related to SAVING green this week on these blogs:

Broccoli Cupcake

The Frugal Seed

 

This week’s Growing Green theme is SAVING green while going green at the same time. I’m a huge bargain shopper when it comes to grocery shopping, so of course I apply that same frugality to our utility bill. There are so many natural things you can do to make a difference ecologically as well as financially.

20 Simple Ways to Save Money on Your Utility Bill

Here are some of my favorite simple tips for saving money on your utility bill. These are easy-peasy ideas to implement that don’t require installing a bunch of new items or remodeling the house:

1. Unplug appliances like the toaster or blender whenever you are not using them.

2. Put your television, DVD player, computer, printer, etc. on a power strip and turn them off at night.

3. Unplug your modem and router at night as well.

4. Turn off the AC and open the windows when the weather is nice.

5. Use fans in the summer and space heaters in the winter.

6. Install a clothesline or use a clothes rack to dry your clothes. Using the dryer accounts for a full THIRD of your electric bill!

7. Line your curtains to help insulate. This is helpful in the winter or summer to keep cold air out or in.

8. Only run your dishwasher when it is completely full.

9. Install a rain barrel in your backyard. Water your plants for free with collected rain water.

10. Don’t flush the toilet every single time you use it. You heard it before — if it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down.

11. Turn off the water in the shower while you’re shampooing. Turn it back on to rinse.

12. Use natural light as much as possible instead of turning on lights.

13. Open the curtains on south facing windows (or north facing if you’re reading this from the Southern Hemisphere) to let in sunlight during the winter.

14. Close the blinds or curtains on south facing windows (or north for you Southerners) in the summer.

15. Use a hot water bottle at night instead of an electric blanket or mattress pad.

16. Turn down the thermostat on your hot water heater.

17. Use the oven as seldom as possible in the summer. Cook on a gas grill instead.

18. A slow cooker costs only pennies to use. Make soups or stews in it instead of on the stove top.

19. Wash the majority of your laundry in cold water.

20. Hand wash large pots & pans to save room in the dishwasher.

What are your best tips for saving green while going green at the same time?

You May Also Like

  1. How Much Money Does It Cost You To Watch TV? | iDreamOfClean

    April 16, 2012 at 9:42 am

    […] of Leaves is sharing 20 Simple Ways to Cut Your Utility Bill, […]

  2. Calie (Broccoli Cupcake)

    April 16, 2012 at 1:52 pm

    These are great tips. I’m only doing about half of them so I need to step it up. I’m afraid that I might have to install 4 clothes lines to handle the laundry this family of four produces. But I’m gonna give it a try!

    1. Christine (iDreamofClean)

      April 17, 2012 at 8:50 pm

      You guys are my hero’s for using clotheslines…I just can’t do it! I’m just doing what I can to get by right now so the dryer is just a convenience I can’t give up :)

    2. Lori Winter

      April 20, 2012 at 9:08 pm

      Ha! Well, every little bit helps ;) I love letting the fresh air and disinfecting sunshine dry as many of my clothes as possible. Certainly doesn’t hurt that it saves me money in the process.

  3. Christine (iDreamofClean)

    April 17, 2012 at 8:47 pm

    Oh, I never thought of unplugging the modem and router also! Probably b/c I’m using it up until the moment I fall asleep :)

  4. Gina

    April 18, 2012 at 7:34 pm

    I stopped buying paper towels about 5 years ago. We use white cloth dishtowels, and I change them daily (or more often if necessary), then bleach them in the wash once a week. Saves me hundreds of dollars a year!

    1. Lori Winter

      April 20, 2012 at 9:08 pm

      That’s awesome! You’ll love next week’s #growinggreen post, then ;)

  5. 5 Simple Tips to Green Your Backyard

    July 11, 2012 at 12:18 pm

    […] also relates to next week’s theme of SAVING green while going green, but why would you shell out money to the water company to water your veggies or your flower garden […]

  6. A Glance in the Rearview Mirror (April 2012)

    August 31, 2012 at 1:34 pm

    […] green, think green, and teach green. My contributions were 5 Simple Tips to Green Your Backyard, 20 Simple Ways to Save Money on Your Utility Bill, a (Non) Disposable Challenge, and a post titled, I Wonder What My Neighbors Must […]

  7. Marco

    February 15, 2013 at 3:58 pm

    Turn your old incandescence light bulbs into expensive but very efficient neon warm-light tubes or LED bulbs

  8. healthy school lunch ideas

    May 23, 2014 at 5:56 pm

    Thanks in support of sharing such a pleasant thinking, piece of
    writing is pleasant, thats why i have read it entirely

  9. Google

    July 9, 2014 at 9:23 pm

    1- Find a product to promote, something you feel passionate about and
    that you know people will want to buy it. But unfortunately not every request will get
    approved. What Googlebot is looking to see in the Free Local Google
    Advertising Listings is quite another.

  10. Las Vegas Refrigerator Parts

    August 31, 2014 at 6:07 am

    Undeniably consider that that yyou stated. Your favorite justification appwared to be
    on the internet the simplest factor tto be mindful of.
    I say to you, I certainly get annoyed whilst people think about worries that they just don’t understand about.
    You managed to hit the nail upon the highest and also outlined out
    the whole thing without having side effect , filks can take
    a signal. Will likely be back to get more. Thanks

  11. corporate gifts sg

    September 3, 2014 at 8:54 pm

    Picking the right location can literally mean the difference between being wildly successful and failing miserably.
    What you choose to give as corporate gifts will depend on who
    you’re giving them to and your industry (average life time value of a client not what’s customary in your industry; don’t copy your competitors,
    it’s rarely a good idea). You can get all sorts of gifts like coffee mug, pen, pen stand, mobile stand, wall clock and many other
    things.

  12. Weight loss using hcg homeopathic drops

    September 13, 2014 at 11:52 pm

    Almost all of this eating is out of habit, monotony, stress, urges depression or anxiety.

    The HCG diet is everywhere, the media are raving, the
    celebs are raving and even some doctors are raving.
    This is a big benefit over other weight loss diets because the feeling of weakness, ranging from
    high to very high, is quite often experienced by dieters practicing other weight loss
    diets.

  13. Turystyka biznesowa

    September 20, 2014 at 1:53 pm

    The Home Business Success Academy is a coaching establishment that assists enterprisers and home business operators
    how to grow their constitutions employing target marketing and
    assorted processes to produce a business. s not that you
    will always attain success, many a times you may fail but you should
    keep yourself going and in the end you surely will be benefitted
    by it. The tire producers in the United States were
    affected positively because they were competing with artificial
    competition.

Comments are closed.