HOW TO LOWER YOUR UTILITY BILLS AND SAVE MONEY !!!

How to lower your utility bills and save money! Tips and tricks to lower your monthly electrical bill in simple and easy DIY steps! As a homeowner, I’m always looking for simple ways to lower my utility bills. Here are 10 tips that you can apply right away and start saving money by lower your energy bills!! :)

▶️Here are links to other popular DIY cleaning tutorials:

Here are the 10 steps that I will cover in this video:
Phantom power
HVAC filter
Water heater temperature
Caulking and weather stripping
Energy Star appliances
Using cold water for laundry
Adjusting room temperatures winter/summer
Programmable thermostats
Changing light bulbs (incandescent, CFL, and LED)
Using timers

If you apply one or more of these easy tips, you’ll be on your way to reduce those electrical bills in no time! Having a lower power bill is not only a great way to save money for future projects or purchases, but also a great way to help the environment by reducing your carbon footprint! We can each do our part in helping make the world a better place.

Question of the day: What are you going to do with your savings? Let me know in the comments below!

If you liked this video, please give it thumbs up and SUBSCRIBE to my channel to enjoy more awesome content. I upload a video at least once a week!

See you in the next video!

[marquettawashington]

My bill went from $178 to 31.86 ($24.50 is administrative fee). I turned off the porch light, garage light. All electronics are on a surge protector and are turned off when I am away from the house and when I am sleeping. I turned off my range and dishwasher. I don't have a microwave and uses a 2 plate burner. I just flick the switch on the electric box when I want to use the stove and dishwasher. In the winter I use a heated mattress pad and only run the heat when I am getting dressed in the AM. It's amazing how much money I have save. I still have to change out the light bulbs. It will be interesting to see how much difference the bulbs will make.

[wildbillo]

I unplug my dryer after I use it... saved about 30.00 a month on my bill I believe...I also put power strips around the house to disconnect stereos, Game consoles and TV's not used daily....another 10.00 bux...

[jakefromsf]

Do your laundry outside of peak electrical hours. So, late at night when there is not a huge demand for electricity. The electric companies charge less during these hours so you can save money this way as well.

[berrywr]

1. Common Sense; use it!
2. Kilowatt Meter - know exactly what your stuff uses.
3. Appliance Timers! $6 to $7 each at Wal-Mart.
4. Water Heater Timer! $50 at Home Depot or Lowe's
5. Power Rate Options! Check with your power company for other options.
6. Mist System for AC coils
7. Dehumidifier for Winter
8. Adjust Thermostat as low as you can stand it in the winter; me it's 58 and in the summer, it's 82.
9. Don't use AC or Heat in rooms you're not using!
10. Cold water for Washing Clothes.
11. Buy a clothesline; it's faster on a dry day than your dryer, but use your dryer for touch up and make things softer...say 15 minutes! You won't know the difference except on your bill.

Forget Phantom power; we're talking a watt here and two there and I know, I checked it. When your AC unit is pulling 1300 watts you realize it's the big gun stuff you need to concentrate your prowness on. Depending on where you live it's either low humidity or high humidity and you can use it to help you...in the winter time you want some moisture assuming dew points outside are low; in the summer, you want low humidity. Why, because I don't run air when dew points are sub 60 and I don't care how hot it gets. Dew points in the 70s which they often are where I live requires getting it out. You don't need a dehumidifier in the summer; your AC doubles doing just that; however in the winter you will need one when it's cold and raining outside; AC thermostats usually bottom out at 60 degrees F (16 C). Dehumidifers can bottom out as low as 41 (5 C). Timer's will pay for themselves in the very 1st year. The savings you gain using one on your water heater is a biggie. I use them on my two refrigerators and freezer during the heat of the afternoon; I shut mine off for two hours, on two hours and off again two hours due to the power rate I have. Most of us might not even be aware that your local power company may offer alternative rates but I'm not kidding when I say, it's going to be a real lifestyle change Monday through Friday from generally noon to 2 pm on the start and 5 pm to 8pm on the end; in Alabama it's 1 pm to 7pm CT. The key during the summer months is to use 85% of your power outside that 6 hour window and 15% in it. I average 93% to 7% but it will get warm inside your home so plan ahead. That rate saves me on average $40 to $50 a month from October to May. What the rate does is make you really aware of what your electricity is costing you and how to maximize your savings. My next door neighbor lives in a single wide mobile home, his bill is $200 a month during the summer; I have a double wide and double the space, my bill was $125. I don't run air when it's dry outside or a rare cold front graces my neck of the woods. I am always mindful of the dew point this time of year. I use the pop up tent style clotheslines; two of them. Yes it's a pain in the ass to hang them up, but I do it. My remaining tip is cook outside and if you have to, take the pizza oven out there too. Don't heat your house up anymore than is necessary. I use an irrigation misting systen I made with irrigation hardware from Home Depot but ordered the timer for the coils on my AC; not kidding it saves me 300 watts per hour in the heat of the day, but plan accordingly; I capture the water from my AC as well and use it in the garden except I have a well, but you folks with city water, it lowers your water bill.

[NordicAdvRider]

Really good tips Pan, but one thing I don’t recommend is the temperature for the water heater tank where water mostly standing still. The recommendation is to not go below 140 because of risk of Legionella bacteria. Or at least regularly increase the temperature to kill the bacteria. But thanks for all great advices 👍

[miriamrusso]

I live in the steaming south Florida.My home is facing the afternoon sun and eventhough I keep the blinds closed my AC is running most of the time.If I walk by the front windows and the blinds are closed I can still feel the hot air just steaming in the house.
I went to Home Depot and purchased a styrefoam panel for construction placed it in the window and my electric bill came down $50 bucks but mostly the house felt much cooler.If you place the foam in between the window and the blind and leave the writing on the panel facing the blinds, it looks like you have your blinds closed.

[CUtigerz]

Add more insulation in your attic. If building a home, be sure exterior walls are adequately insulated during building phase. Analyze home position related to sun to determine hotspots. May cost more on front end, but saves in the long run.

[nikkirosa]

Thank you for the information, but turning the furnace off after heating up your home is the best way to cut down. Closing down or off the summer part of your home is another.
I use zone heating and most people without this use low watts heaters ( the really small ones work really great and they at $10.00- worth a try at this price).
Putting on more clothe in the winter is a "no brainer." Everyone in cold weather needs to sleep in old fashion long johns. Using low spinning fans spanning in the non cool direction works for keeping heat in and moving around room. You don't want the heat to escape.
Boiling a pot of water or steam from the shower; placing moisture in the air will also keep it warmer long in rooms like the kitchen bath, this is quite easily done.
The plastic roles for protecting against messes cost $1.29 ( cheap drop clothes) and can be affixed with Velcro to the tops and sides of the door. This can be draped to completely, covering doors no longer in use reminds you that this part of your home cost money and forces you to think about how much.
Thermal drapes are easily made and hot water bottles bring comfort to those that really like to turn off the heat.
There are so many ways. I know tons more. It really depends on people's personalities and physical needs. Wood stoves and stationary bikes are my cure for being cold. I also like to smuggle up, dogs, kids and, even men are good for keeping you warm in a pinch.
Hope this helps.

[TheQuarterbackX]

Cool. I live in Houston. My neighbors are from Florida. They say the heat and humidity here feel just like Florida.

I did something simular to my last home. I had bought the reflective mirror tent and put it all on the sliding glass dining room doors and living room windows. Both were faceing east and would be the sun all day. I saved $50 a month.

An architecture friend of mine mentioned window over hangs out side. Though we had a patio cover which made a world of difference.

Then planted a tiny tree in the back yard, which grew up to be a very big tree in a few years. It made a world of difference to our electric bill. You could also go out side, back yard, and under the shade would feel 10 degrees less.

When the power company went to trim back tree limb away from power lines which ran the length of everyone's back yard fence. They way over cut them and took a lot of what use to be shade on the house to direct sun light. I think our bull war up $64 or more a month when they had done that.

I did go around and run an insulating strip around our front door. You could also see light coming from the bottom to the outside. So, added a step plate to close that gap. That made some more difference.

We use to live in an old home built back in the 60s. So our single air vent and filter was in the center of the house hallway to the bed rooms it was cut into the wall, with one air filter. I had read that opening up a larger vent will help it not work so hard, and to make sure the walls 8nside are smooth. To I bought a few 1 foot by one foot sheetrock, screws, and a small plastwe of paris so, to smooth the inside up. Then with a new screen I placed it above the original, traced its outline, then cut out the sheetrock wall to add that adition vent room so it would not have to work so hard. That saved an additional $50 a month. And, the air filter on the bottom did not get dirty as often. Win win.

I will say the home I an in now, one of the home builders was advertising ZERO NET ENERGY. They did this with solor panels. The ideal was that during the summer you bill will be much lower. And, during the winter, , you would be making more energy then what you needed. So, , the energy company would need to buy back that energy surplus you were producing. All and all the energy you made to the energy you sold back to the energy company was to average out the year to Zero.

One of the biggest savings I did was I found out a, friend in my church was a power broker. I was not fully sure what that was. He explained he helps people find the best place to buy their electricity from and some other stuff. Now, I had looked on the web to save power and never really found much of a difference. It basically seemed all the power companies had all sorts of different ways to manipulate the electric bill they charged. But, basically seemed to all average out the same.

So, I gave my friend, the Power Broker, a try. He found an electric company that was charging just a tad south of half what we were paying. I transformed to that company and sure enough. Our Bill's dropped down just shy of 1/2 of what we were paying before. It was awesome.

Then another experament I had tried was where I could close all the doors with in the house: bed rooms, bathrooms, closets, pantry, laundry room, and office. I cant say how much of a difference it had made. I had an chronically mother at the end of her life I was very busy taking care of whild still getting settled into our new home. And, let's say there just was a long list of things going on that was very time consuming and pulling me in different directions all at once. So, I did not note just how much of a saving this had made. But, could say I saw a clear difference in my billm if I had to guess maybe give or take $20-$35 a month as a guessamation. This way the thermistor stat in the main part of the house, was not reading and trying to cool the whole house. But, by closing the doors, I was able to decrease in theory just how much the house was being cooled. And, it worked. Though when walking into one of those rooms, you could just nearly feel a difference of temper. Just a slight difference, but not as much as you would feel when in a 2 story home and going up stairs.

Another trick that I still had not made full sense of was when my deciesed wife and I bought a home. It was a 2 story. Very nice home. The builder offered different levels of insulation for the homes they built at the time. And, it was a well known builder that stood behind their work for the first year. Also known for quality all around. Well my step son lived up on the second floor, and had free range to set the thermostat whatever made him feel most comfortable. He gets cold easily, So, he would set the temperature much warmer than I would. I had the down stairs for my comfort set as 69 degrees. Well the summer time our electric bill seemed to go about $35 a month during the hottest months. That is just crazy talk, and unheard of atount these parts. Thexonly time I seen a bill like that was when i, firstcmoved out on my own, and would never used the a/c. I just could not afford the energy the appartment a/c would use. Which was odd. I would do experaments where I would, tey a/c for one seek of a month, for one day of the month, and when I would come home from work in the late evening would just turn the a/c on long enough to get comfortable and then offm each, time at the appartment when I would do the experiment the bill would go up around $100 for the month. Though we had an appartment above us, both sides ofus, and behind us. Surely that should had added lots of insulation. Though not as well as one would hope.

No e since I had lived in that house with my wife and had such a low energy bill, i, had been wondering what was the. Sause of it being so mow. Very likely the insulation played a part in that. My wife and I agreed to get the maximum insulation the builder would offer. Thinking it would save us a lot each month and over the years. Maybe the electric company cost we had at the time was greater than I realized I never talked to my neighbors about their electric bill then year and half we were there. And, I never asked my mother her bill to compair. Though I think at times, peek of summer her bill may be get up to maybe $300, though remember my father saying at times when I was little it has gotten up on rair occasions $450. So, safe to say a giant difference between the two homes.

Though when talking to an A/C guys, they shared how a two story home electric a/c bill can work. The temperature down stares may be kept at a comfortable level. But, the heat down stairs always rises. To it rises to the second floor. While the cool air up stairs is heavier, and will sink from the second floor down to the first floor. Well because of this dynamics. The a/c guys, taught that if you meet the up stairs temperature slightly warmer, , then it can lower you energy bill and the a/c does not have to work as hard. Now I live in a 1 and 1/2 home now. Thw up stairs is a game room. I am not seeing Aanywhere near the same savings. But, have a strong feeling experimenting with the two was most likely what had made such a big difference with the house my wife and I had. I just dont remember what temperature my step son meft the up stairs. And, this home seems there is some difficulty with mold growing up stairs. So, I dont want to make it much warmer and allow the moist air to encurage more mold growth. The very least, something to think about and try. After all it was kick ass to have each month during the hotest months doe here, $35 month bills. It was almost as if getting it for free.
Of course ceiling fans can make a big difference to how cool a room can feel with circulating the air. In rooms that do not have ceiling fans, I had put up a floor stand fan that goes about 4 feet up off the ground. Voy that feels good when I go to sleep and feel that air blowing over me. I tend to feel hot all the time. And, with allergies, keeping the house cool makes a world of difference to who well I feel through the day, and sleep at night.

I am sure there are a few other things I can think up. So, I will finish, with the last one here. I just google different ways I could make my home more efficient. I read different pages and suggestions on the subject. Then from there I would try some of thesuggestions. Or, would come up with new ideals to try, which were based on the sugestions.

I can say one of the best ways I have found to make a, world of difference in all aspects of my life was to read read read up on the subject. And, e parents experaments experaments to try new and different approache, ways, and aspects to find what kind of a difference it can make for me. Over time you build on your knowledge to get better, and better, and better results.

Good luck.

[brianfaris]

Phantom power is HUGE! When I unplug my oven when not using it, I save literally like $50 a month. It's crazy.

[lalajohnson]

My trick for cutting electric use is grilling up meats for a couple days at a time. Because an electric stove uses 220 watts every hour it's on. So every day you don't use your stove cuts your electric bill, reduces water use (less dishes to wash) and gives you more free time!

[joanneyarborough]

I really enjoyed your amazing "Saving Money" I need to get my Son to get some of those lights you are talking about. We are seniors and living on fixed income and that would really help. Thank you and GOD BLESS YOU !

[joshuajerome]

I live in the North West. Our winters are very cold and dry. I purchased a small inexpensive humidistat at WalMart, to keep on the counter in the center of our home.
By increasing the humidity of your home in the winter to the comfort zone ( typically 35-55% humidity ) the heat will hold on to the moisture in the air and result in your furnace turning on less. For me, it turned on every half hour instead of every 10 minutes.
Also, reverse your ceiling fan and push the warm air down from the ceiling.

[amandahow]

Cheap DIY for insulating windows a bit better to keep in the wanted type of air is putting up bubble wrap on them! Make sure it has a flat side and large bubbles, spritz the window wiht water, and instant cling on! Don't need to use for all windows obviously. If there are some rooms where you want added privacy without sacrificing light, it's a good alternative! Privacy and insulation all in one :) Using whole house fans can reduce use of an AC by forcing hot air from out of the house, into the attic and out the attic vents. You can open doors and windows at night when it's cooler to make it more effective. And there are tons of cheap DIY ways to do it instead of spending a few hundred dollars :)

[thomaswinterjr]

THEM LED LIGHT BULBS WORK REALLY GOOD I PUT ONE IN MY LAMP LIGHT AND KEPT ON ALL THE TIME
ITS STILL GOING 5 YEARS LATER THE SAME BULB!
KEEP IN MIND ITS HOW MANY TIMES YOU TURN ON AND OFF THE SWITCH IS WHAT RUNS THEM OUT

[appleguy]

#1Using overhead fans makes a big difference to move interior airflow. #2 Wash all my clothes on cold, its better for fabrics and save $$$ on heating water. #3 Dry most all our shirts enough to get wrinkles out (1-2 m), then put on hangers on our shower rod, dries really fast.
#4 My stove and oven use the same breaker so I switch the breaker off when not in use but found an airfryer uses a small fraction of Elec vs an oven or stove. My top pic is Cuisinart which offers settings for AIrfryer, warm, broil and bake ; )

[RMalai]

I gave your video a big thumps up! I am going to caulk around all the backdoor and windows. I may use weatherstrip as well. but caulking is inexpensive, so I would first do that. my last month bill came $360 and I am still in shock!

[googleuser]

I precool my Pepsi on the back porch in cold weather. Almost frozen before I put a case in the fridge to save KWs. Consolidate trips through the open door with my smoke break so as not to lose BTUs. I like cheap.

[the_real_greywolf]

You hit every point. My bill split in half compare to last year.

[ushillbillies]

Our washer and drier are all in one, it does the same size load on 1/3 of the water, plugs into 120 v outlet and has no exhaust vent and only draws 12 amps at full load, so our solar system will do it., its made by LG and its amazing, I will wash and dry but we use a clothes line ..