Savings Start at Home

Posted by Mike Smith :: July 30, 2007 @ 4:20 pm

There seem to be some monthly expenses that are unavoidable because they are related to basic household needs. As a result, these expenses often get overlooked when people try to cut back on their spending. However, it is possible to reduce these types of expenditures, as you’ll see in the following examples on energy conservation.

There are two main ways to conserve energy in your home: making your current home as efficient as possible and purchasing new equipment that is more energy efficient.

To realize major reductions in your energy bills, you might need to make some up-front investments. It may seem odd to think of spending money on your home as an investment, but you will reap returns in the form of possible rebates, savings on monthly energy bills, potential tax write-offs, as well as increased value in your home. Of course, the fringe benefit of these improvements is that by reducing your energy needs, you are taking a proactive step to help protect the environment.

The Energy Star program is a joint effort between the US Environment Protection Agency and the US Department of Energy. What started as a program to identify energy-efficient computer monitors has grown into a major effort that now includes nearly all types of home electronics, appliances, and construction materials. Energy Star products typically pay for themselves, in the form of reduced energy bills, over their lifetime. Savings will depend on the type of product as well as what you are currently using. Information on products, their potential energy savings, and recent tax incentives can be found on the Energy Star website.

If you are considering making these improvements, a P2P loan from Lending Club is a great way to finance your purchases. Taking the low interest rate into account, the savings in energy bills will likely cover the cost of the loan as well.

If you are not ready to make a major improvement in the energy efficiency of your home, try these simple steps, which will also have an impact:

• Replace incandescent light bulbs with halogen bulbs
• Plug air leaks by sealing around windows and doors
• Turn off, or unplug, appliances and electronics when not in use
• Turn down your refrigerator. Keeping it too cold is an unnecessary waste of energy.
• Use cold water to wash your clothes and air dry them