Turn It Off

Turn it Off.

Yes that is one of the best ways to save money. Turn the lights off when you are not using them. Turn off the TV if you are not watching it. Turn off the computer at night, you can actually damage the batteries on your lap top if you leave it plugged in all the time, as it is in charge mode when plugged in.

Don't just turn off the TV. unplug it or at least use a powerbar so you can totaly shut it off. It will use up to 85% of the power when turned off (it is really in standby mode not shut off) as it does when turned on. The same goes for the VCR / DVD / CD player, you have unplug them to fully shut them off.

When I visit friends I am amazed to walk through the house and find lights, radios, tvs, and a host of other electronic items turned on ....and no one around useing them. My grandkids seem to think that you have to have the light on in the bathroom - in the middle of the afternoon. You can manage very nicely without the lights on when the sun is shining and it is daylight.

I wince when I see houses with all the outside lights on, and lights on in every room of the house.

As a society we take electricity for granted and only think about the cost once a month when we pay the power bill. Well our local power company has announced that in order to meet increased demand and the capital cost of replacing old equiptment and upgrading infastructor, the cost of power is going to more then DOUBLE over the next ten years.

It is time to really take a serious look at how you are using power, the ways you can cut back on the amount of power you use.

Things you can do to decrease your power usage.

Turn off the lights
Use Compact bulbs Fluorescent or LED lights
Use timers or motion detectors on outside lights
Use power bars to totally turn off TV, DVD, CD, microwave, and other electronics
Do you really need that many TVs?
Eat by candle light
Set your hot water tank temp lower
If you are buying new appliances look for Energy Star ones that use the least power
Turn the heat in your house down a couple of degrees

Everything will add up as savings for you.

Cheap-O Economics