Start by Not Wasting Power!!!

In order to start saving money on your electric bill you will need to stop wasting power.

One of the easiest things to do is get rid of all your power wasting incandescent lights (the ones with the filament that get really hot). You can save a lot just by replacing all of those lights with Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFL). These lights have come down in price and last far longer than incandescent lights. You will actually spend less for these lights because of how long they last.

You will also want to make sure when you replace your appliances you get Energy Star compliant appliances. These will save a substantial amount of power over your older appliances.

What many people don't realize is the amount of power many of your modern electronics will consume even when turned off. These devices when turned off continue to operate at a lower power level giving you the convenience of quick start up when you turn it on. The easy way to deal with these devices is to plug them into a power strip and use the power strip switch to turn them off.

I also use a programmable thermostat for my central air and heat. This allows me to set a comfortable temperature for the times my family is home and awake. I set the programming for energy saving temperatures during the times we are sleeping or nobody is going to be home. With this I never forget to change the settings and always save power. You can pick up a programmable thermostat at your local home improvement store for a very reasonable price. It will pay for itself in energy savings and comfort in no time.