Save Money on Your Utility Bills This Summer

Summer heat can wreak havoc on your wallet. Home utility bills can easily get out of control. Check out these 10 tips on how you can SAVE MONEY and keep your home energy efficient.

1. Check air filters. Dirty intake air filters for your home air conditioning unit can cost you money on bills...and even ruin your HVAC system. Be sure to check these important filters often, especially if you have pets. Filters can get clogged up quickly from pet hair and dust.

2. Get a programmable thermostat. Lowering or raising your home’s temperature by 7 to 10 degrees for eight hours as you sleep can save $100 a year. Get a programmable thermostat so you don’t forget.

3. Ease your internet speed. Internet providers always push the newest, fastest options, but a basic service of 20 megabits per second (Mbps) is fine for the typical family to surf, email and stream videos. Optimum Online offers that speed at $29.99 a month. Save $120 every year.

4. Turn down your water heater. Most water heaters come from the factory set at 140 degrees – hot enough to scald. Turn it down to 120 degrees and save about $60 per year.

Check out our recent panel discussion with experts from TVA, TCAD and AARP. It includes money-saving programs in place to help ease the burden of utility bills!




5. Seal your home. Inspect for leaks at windows and doors with a lighted incense stick. Sealing them could cut a $1,000 heating and cooling bill by $200. Really!

6. Don’t drench your lawn. It needs just 1 inch of water per week, including rain. Sprinklers often deliver much more than that. Put a coffee mug under the sprinkler and stick in a ruler when you are done. If you collected 2 inches of water, you are spending about $158 a month during the summer on wasted water.

7. Clean your trap. A dryer can lose 75 percent of its efficiency if lint clogs its trap. Clean it after every use and save $101 on the annual cost of operating a dryer.

9. Save on your bulbs. LED bulbs are no longer scarily expensive. Replace 40 incandescent bulbs with LEDs, and you could save $1,500 over their 10-year life span.