The Unconventional Ways of Saving Energy

You always hear a lot of things and advice as to how to save energy and spend less on your consumption of it. While you practically have tried using all those traditional methods, you realized later on that they aren’t really as effective as you thought they should be. However, it does not mean you just ignore the fact that you are spending so much to be comfortable at home.

One way to at least give you some optimism is to read these unconventional ways of saving energy we compiled online. So if you’re interested, read this…

Cooking outdoors is more than just fun. (photo credit: Bridgman.co.uk)

The first tips have something to do with cooking. We got this from GreenMountainEnergy.com, in an article called “Unorthodox Summer Energy-Saving Tips.”

Cook outdoors: Grilling already is one of America’s favorite summer pastimes, but firing up the grill doesn’t have to be limited to weekends or the 4th of July holiday. Instead of switching on your stovetop or turning on the oven, which heats up your home, cook outside to make life more comfortable inside.

Cooking tips: Salad, fruit, nuts, cereal, olives and cheese are just a few types of food that do not require any cooking in the oven or stove. Eating more uncooked food will help reduce your electricity usage, and it’s easier to do in the summer since there are so many fresh fruits and vegetables available.

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Those two tips above make a lot of sense, really. First, eating fresh and raw food, especially fruits and vegetables isn’t just about being healthy, it actually helps you save energy because you don’t need to use your cooking equipment to prepare the. Also, the fact that cooking outdoors sounds a lot more fun than indoors is already a good enough reason to save energy since you don’t have to always rely on your oven or gas stove.

Meanwhile, when it comes to your electric bill, there also are unconventional but proven ways to cut your consumption. See this bunch of tips from StarEnergyPartners.com:

Plant greenery around your home. If you start from scratch, it’s an investment that might take years to pay off, but the right selection of plants can shade your house and keep it cooler in warmer months. It also has a nice side effect of making your house more aesthetically pleasing.

Take advantage of off-peak rates. Some people don’t realize that electricity companies charge more during peak usage hours. If you use selective timers to control your energy usage and restrict it to only off-peak hours of the day, you could enjoy the benefits of the reduced rate. Try it on large appliances like your washer and dryer.

Keep temperatures in mind when using appliances. Help your appliances avoid working so hard just to increase and/or decrease temperature…you can save energy. Let food cool down before refrigerating it. Turn the heat off the stovetop before you are done cooking so residual heat can finish the job. Use cold water in laundry cycles.

Insulate everything. Home improvement stores sell special insulating materials for light switches and electrical outlets. You can also buy a special insulating paint to line your interior walls. It may not seem like a lot, but every little bit helps when it comes to saving energy.

Source: http://starenergypartners.com/blog/4-unconventional-tricks-to-lower-your-electric-bill/

The second tip is probably the most important one to consider since you are most likely unaware of the fact that electricity service providers indeed will charge you more when you’re using electricity in peak hours. Only if you commit to figuring out what those peak hours are, then you know how to go around them and cut your costs.

Greenery at home. (photo credit: SundayCollector.com.au)

Lastly, you get to save energy even in the littlest things you do like how the way you dry your clothes and keeping tabs of your roof. Instead of using your dryer every single time you wash your clothes, why not hang them to dry? By doing so, you actually can save about 4% of your home’s yearly energy consumption. As for your roof, it has been proven that painting it white will allow the living space below to be cooler, which means you don’t have to always rely on your air conditioning all summer long.