I decided to create a new Hub identity using my real name. I will eventually transfer the two articles I had as West1949.  Don't ask how I took that name - it's too long a story. 

This is one in my Dobehave Series: Save Energy, Be Green, Have More  (money etc). We all want more. There is a formula for having more: do-be-have, in that order. So the first things is to do, then you become and through that you will have.  The first place we shall take a look at is our lighting habits in our home and how to save energy and money.

This is in response to question:

How can I save energy and make money

Most of us are not so fortunate at the moment that we can have our own energy system. So we are totally dependent on the electricity supplied  by the electric company.  (In another posting I will talk about how you can have your own home electricity company).  

We are creatures of habits and over the years of abundant and cheap energy supply we all got into certain habits in the way we use electricity. Light has become some easy - just flip the switch and there is light. But do we really need lights everywhere? 

The lights we burn use the greatest amount of electricity in any home.  By changing a few habits we can reduce the amount of electricity we use, save quite a lot of money, and of course at the same time doing our bit to reduce the amount of fossil fuels used for making electricity and the amount of greenhouse gases being spewed into the atmosphere.  

Some of the tips here demand a little effort

Others are so easy that you will think: why didn't I do that before?  Let's start by asking ourselves some questions? What are my habits? How much light do I have burning and in how many rooms? Do I really need to have the lights on in the kitchen when I am sitting in the den or living room watching TV? As a parent am I teaching my children better habits than I learned from my parents?  Just stop reading for a moment and look around where you are sitting. How many lights are burning and do you need them?  Where are the rest of the household members? How many rooms are lit up that are empty? What kind of bulbs am I using?  

So down to the basics:

*   Turn off lights in rooms that are empty, even the kitchen and  bathrooms when no one there.

*   Teach the other family members to do the same. Yes, you may have to come down on the kids a bit on this one.

*   Make the kids turn off their TV, DVD or music player whenever they leave their room for a length of time.  If it is so easy to switch the switch to have light, it is just as easy to create the habit of switching the switch to save, and make money at the same time.  

What else can we do?

* Switch to energy saving bulbs.   

This can be expensive, unless you want to. Consider also that if you go out and buy the new energy saving bulbs, you will have to throw away a lot of the old bulbs. So don't do it all at the same time.

The way I do it is when a bulb burns out, I replace it with an energy saving bulb. When I buy the new one, I buy two so I have it for when the next regular bulb dies. Fairly soon your whole house will be saving you money.  This also goes for florouscent lights. These can also be replaced with energy saving lights, and they actually give you better lighting.

*  Use dimmer switches 

Very often the light we have going is far too bright for our needs. Using dimmers also reduces the amount of electricity we burn.  When we become more aware of how we are living and our habits in one area, it becomes easier to do the same in other areas.  

This is the easiest response to the slogan on how to help the environment: Recycle, Reuse and Reduce. You are reducing your energy use, but not reducing your standard of living. In fact you are raising your standard of living by having more money available for other things.

The subject of global warming, climate change and alternatives to fossil fuels have become very dear to me.

I write a fair amount on this subject on my blog: www.alternativepowerpanel.com/blog.

I also have a series of tips to save energy and improve energy use. I call it: Dobehave. You can read this whichever way you want. The above article is one part of that series