If you are not careful it can be very easy for the electric bill to get more expensive than you had planned.
And when you are on a budget it is important to keep costs down so you can afford to eat. So I am pointing out a few things you can consider to help reduce your monthly electric bill.
Light is said to be responsible for about 9% of the electric bill ( EIA, 2018) but this could vary based on the individual’s average use. One thing you could do, which may seem like common sense, is to keep the lights turned off during the day. At first you may assume this isn’t even necessary advice as light obviously isn’t needed during the day, but it can become a habit to unconsciously turn on the light when entering a room or if it is just starting to get a little bit dark out - although not enough to justify it. Try to be aware of that and to keep the light off until you absolutely need it. Also try planning your day better so you can to do most of your work earlier in the day when light is free instead of staying up at night to do things when possible to avoid increasing the cost of your electric bill. And when you do need the light using energy efficient light bulbs can also decrease the cost in the long run.
Along those same lines, you can save money by not leaving unused electrics plugged in. Leaving your appliances plugged in can cost you $100 or more per year. It doesn’t make sense to pay so much money, that could have been invested in savings or that could go towards other expenses, on something you are not even using. Another reason it is good to unplug unused appliances is to protect your electronics from power surges during storms, which could result in the added expense of needing to pay for repairs or replacements (Crank, Josh 2018).
Yeshua said “…‘Gather the leftover pieces, so that nothing gets wasted.’” John 6:12. Don’t let the fact that what you may save may not look like much in the short term lead to wastefulness that can add up to a lot over the years. We should not be careless about how we manage what we have been blessed with, not just simply so that we can have more money, but so that we can have the means to share more with others.
References:
Photo by Riccardo Annandale on Unsplash from https://unsplash.com/photos/7e2pe9wjL9M
Author Unknown 2018 “How is electricity used in U.S. homes?” eia received from
https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=96&t=3
Crank, Josh (2018) “Should You Unplug Appliances To Save Electricity?” Direct Energy received from
https://www.directenergy.com/blog/should-you-unplug-appliances-when-not-in-use/
