How to Save Electricity at Home
Use more natural lighting., Designate a few rooms as night hangout rooms for your family., Use candles instead of electric lights a few times a week., Rethink your outdoor lighting system., Use energy-efficient lightbulbs.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Use more natural lighting.
Do you tend to keep the curtains and blinds closed and flip on the overhead lights? Letting your house flood with natural light instead can lead to big electricity savings.Unless you need strong, focused light to complete a particular task, try leaving the lights off during the day and embracing the sun's rays in the rooms you're using.
Try to set up your family's daytime work and play space in the brightest room in your house.
That way everyone can read, work on art projects, use computers, and so on without relying on artificial lighting.
Use light-colored curtains and blinds as window coverings.
Find coverings that provide privacy but still allow diffused light to flood your rooms. -
Step 2: Designate a few rooms as night hangout rooms for your family.
Instead of spreading out all over the house, have your family spend evening hours in just one or two rooms.
That way you won't have to light the whole house to enjoy the evening, plus you'll have the added bonus of spending quality time with each member of the family. , You don't have to wait until a summer thunderstorm knocks out the power to break out the candles.
Choose a night or two a week to leave the lights off and light your family's way with sturdy, slow-burning candles that cast a fair amount of light.
Kids will find it exciting, and over time you'll save electricity and cash.
You can use the candlelit nights as an excuse to power down the rest of the house, too.
Encourage family members to do activities that don't require electricity, such as reading by candlelight or telling fun or scary stories.
Be sure that your children know how to handle candles safely, and that the candles and matches are stored in a secure place when they aren't in use. , Leaving a porch light or path lights burning all night long can waste a lot of electricity.
Determine whether having lights on overnight is really necessary before flipping the switch in the evenings.
If you have lights around your house for security purposes, consider getting automatic security lights with motion detectors instead of using lights that stay on constantly.
Decorative lights that complement your garden or pathway can be replaced with solar-powered lights that charge during the day and cast a soft, pleasant glow at night.
If you use lights to decorate during the holidays, flip them off before going to bed, rather than leaving them on all night long. , Replace all of your incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) or LED bulbs.
Incandescent bulbs release most of their energy through heat, rather than light.
Newer bulb styles are much more energy efficient, and they save a lot of electricity and money over time.
CFLs use only about 1/4 the energy of incandescent bulbs.
They come in many shapes and styles.
Be sure to dispose of these bulbs properly, since they contain small amounts of mercury.
LED bulbs are slightly more expensive than CFLs, but they last longer and don't contain mercury.
LED bulbs are slightly more efficient than CFLs.
If you like the ability to customize your environment, LED bulbs come in multicolor and dimmable variants.
Some even give you the ability to choose a color using your cell phone! -
Step 3: Use candles instead of electric lights a few times a week.
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Step 4: Rethink your outdoor lighting system.
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Step 5: Use energy-efficient lightbulbs.
Detailed Guide
Do you tend to keep the curtains and blinds closed and flip on the overhead lights? Letting your house flood with natural light instead can lead to big electricity savings.Unless you need strong, focused light to complete a particular task, try leaving the lights off during the day and embracing the sun's rays in the rooms you're using.
Try to set up your family's daytime work and play space in the brightest room in your house.
That way everyone can read, work on art projects, use computers, and so on without relying on artificial lighting.
Use light-colored curtains and blinds as window coverings.
Find coverings that provide privacy but still allow diffused light to flood your rooms.
Instead of spreading out all over the house, have your family spend evening hours in just one or two rooms.
That way you won't have to light the whole house to enjoy the evening, plus you'll have the added bonus of spending quality time with each member of the family. , You don't have to wait until a summer thunderstorm knocks out the power to break out the candles.
Choose a night or two a week to leave the lights off and light your family's way with sturdy, slow-burning candles that cast a fair amount of light.
Kids will find it exciting, and over time you'll save electricity and cash.
You can use the candlelit nights as an excuse to power down the rest of the house, too.
Encourage family members to do activities that don't require electricity, such as reading by candlelight or telling fun or scary stories.
Be sure that your children know how to handle candles safely, and that the candles and matches are stored in a secure place when they aren't in use. , Leaving a porch light or path lights burning all night long can waste a lot of electricity.
Determine whether having lights on overnight is really necessary before flipping the switch in the evenings.
If you have lights around your house for security purposes, consider getting automatic security lights with motion detectors instead of using lights that stay on constantly.
Decorative lights that complement your garden or pathway can be replaced with solar-powered lights that charge during the day and cast a soft, pleasant glow at night.
If you use lights to decorate during the holidays, flip them off before going to bed, rather than leaving them on all night long. , Replace all of your incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) or LED bulbs.
Incandescent bulbs release most of their energy through heat, rather than light.
Newer bulb styles are much more energy efficient, and they save a lot of electricity and money over time.
CFLs use only about 1/4 the energy of incandescent bulbs.
They come in many shapes and styles.
Be sure to dispose of these bulbs properly, since they contain small amounts of mercury.
LED bulbs are slightly more expensive than CFLs, but they last longer and don't contain mercury.
LED bulbs are slightly more efficient than CFLs.
If you like the ability to customize your environment, LED bulbs come in multicolor and dimmable variants.
Some even give you the ability to choose a color using your cell phone!
About the Author
Alice Armstrong
Writer and educator with a focus on practical pet care knowledge.
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