Tips to Save Money Heating Your House and Making it Energy Efficient

This hub is a continuation to my previous hubs that stated tips on how to save money on your food bills and health care services. The amount we spend on the house we live in constitutes a major part of our monthly expenditure, and certainly there are various ways in which we can reduce the expenses to some extent.

The most important step to save money on various household departments is to save energy usage and consider a whole- house-energy-efficiency approach. You need to figure out which parts of your house consume maximum energy and then work on them. You can save loads of money by saving the energy utilization at your house and optimizing it well, to reap maximum benefits. Below are certain tips:

1) For general laundry, use cold water detergent more often. This will save your money on hot water bills.

2) Ensure that your attic is properly insulated and don't have any leaks, in order to save your fuel bills. Also check your doors and windows for the same. According to the experts, plugging holes and cracks in your home can be quickest and cheapest way to save energy and money.

3) Make use of electrical appliances like freezers, dishwashers, dryers and toasters only when there is a full load.

4) Try using compact fluorescent light blubs. They save a lot of energy and hence money.

5) Make it a habit to switch off your computer and monitor when not in use.

6) Switch over from long baths to short showers. Limiting your showers to five minutes can save a lot on hot water bills.

7) Check for open fireplace dampers. If your house has a fireplace, assure that the damper is tight fitting, so that room heat doesn't get lost up through the chimney.

8) Air dry your dishes after wash, instead of using your dishwasher's drying cycle. This definitely will save a lot of unnecessary energy and money wastage.

9) Keep a regular check on your furnace and air conditioning and clean, maintain and replace them as and when needed. Check your owner's manual for the recommended maintenance.

10) Install a simple shower control device in your bathroom as that can save a lot of money on your yearly water bills This device brings down the maximum flow of water by a third (gallons per minute), and can be bought at any hardware store.

11) Check your family's lightening needs and usage patterns, while focusing more on high usage areas such as the living room, kitchen etc. Search for the ways in which you can control these lightening areas better like getting occupancy sensors, dimmers and timers and installing them in these areas to bring down the usage of lighting energy.

12) You can wear proper gloves and try washing dirty dishes by hand to save money on operating a dishwasher.

13) Ensure that your draperies have thermal lining to keep in heat during winter and cool air during summers.

14) Use power strips to plug home electronics, such as TVs and DVD players. You can easily turn off the power strips when the equipment is not in use. DVD players and TV suck a lot of power even in their standby modes.

15) Check out the energy star label on your home appliances and related products. Energy stars ensure that the products do meet the strict efficiency guidelines set by the Environmental protection agency and the department of Energy.

I hope the above tips help you in saving some energy and money on your household areas.