Blasting the air conditioning to counteract stifling heat can provide much-needed relief this summer, but the utility bills that follow might not be as pleasant. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the price of electricity has been steadily climbing over the past two years.
The good news is you might have more control over your energy usage than you think. Paula Glover, president of the Alliance to Save Energy, a nonprofit that advocates for energy efficiency policy, estimates that based on numbers from the Energy Department, consumers could save 10% to 20% a year on energy bills just by shifting habits and making some energy-efficient investments. But, she adds, “You have to be diligent.
O’Donnell discovered that his lamp, appliances and phone chargers were using more electricity than he realized even when powered off, so he made an effort to unplug them when possible and estimates he saves at least $50 a month from those changes.Simple changes like adjusting your thermostat, turning lights off when you leave the room and keeping windows and doors shut when the air conditioning is on can go a long way, Glover says.