Keeping Your Cool Without Breaking the Bank!

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For some of us it has been a very hot summer and the electric bill makes us need to catch our breath when we open it! My electric bill doubled between June and July! Fortunately for me I had already started trying to save money on my electric bill so it was not as big of a shock as it could have been!

One thing I do is set my thermostat to 76 when I am going to be out of the house for more than 4 hours and if I am going to be gone for the entire day I set it to 80. When I get home I turn it over to 68 or 70 for an hour and then set it to 72 before I go to bed. Some of you have programmable thermostats and that makes things much easier.

Another good trick if you have a window unit and not Central Air is to put a box fan about 3 feet away from the unit blowing into the room. This will help to cool things down much faster and keeps your air conditioner from over working. Using ceiling fans also help a lot if you have them. Be sure you have the ceiling fan set to turn the correct direction for summer. In the summer the blades should be turning counter-clockwise.

If you live in a dry area, such as the desert, you may need to add some moisture to the air. This can be accomplished in many ways, the most common way is to put a pan of water on the stove. There is no need to turn on a burner or anything as it will evaporate on its own. Many people also put flower vases around the house. This is a way to add moisture without looking like you are doing it at all!

If you live in a very wet area such as coastal or near a large lake, you may have too much moisture in the air and you may need a dehumidifier. Be sure to not over do it! You want to remove some of the moisture but not all of it. There is a happy medium and it is different for every person.

On cool evenings, when the temperature is in the mid to lower 70s turn the air conditioner off and open the windows! This could save you $8 to $10 a day on your cooling bill! Be sure to close the house up before you leave for work the next day. If you have plenty of insulation in your house you may not even want to turn the air back on until the evenings are hot again.

If you live in a house you can also put a sprinkler on the roof and run it at low volume during the hottest part of the day. This helps to dissipate the heat more quickly. Also an attic fan can be very helpful as temperatures may reach 130+ in your attic. By simply venting out the hot air your air conditioner will work more efficiently.

That is it for today. Please feel free to leave any comments that might help out! If you have questions please let me know and I will do my best to answer them!







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Tighten Your Belt and Save Money!!

In today's failing/failed economy everyone is looking for ways to survive the recession/depression. Though I would love to give you the one good answer to how to make extra money to make ends meet, I cannot. I can however share with you my experiences in saving money. Saving a dime is like making a dime! If you save a dime ten times a day, you've saved a dollar!

I will share plenty of ways to cut down on your expenses and suggestions to put that savings to good use! I welcome any questions and comments and discussion you may have. President Obama has started his stimulus package and many people are seeing $8 to $15 a week extra on their paychecks. My first tip is to take that extra money and put it into a savings account! Let your money draw some interest. You did not have the money before so you won't even miss it. I personally put $10 a week into a savings account. That is $520 put into savings every year.

Finding the right savings account is not always the easiest thing. I suggest finding a savings account at a bank that does not charge you a maintenance fee. Too many banks charge you $3 to $5 a month to save your money. If that is the case it would be better to put your money in your mattress! Some banks will charge toy a maintenance fee if you have below $100 in your account. So, stick your money in your mattress until you have $100 then put it into your account and forget that it is there.

If the bank offers you a debit card or checks for your savings account, decline the offer. If you have the ability to take your money out of the account it makes it that much harder to save! Many people that I know put 10% of every paycheck into a savings account. This is great if you are able to do that, but most people are not well off enough to part with 10% of their paycheck. I hope to get you to the point where you have saved enough money on utility bills and such that you have an extra 20% to put into your newly opened savings account.

I will never ask you to buy anything or join anything! Just press ctrl+d and bookmark the blog and come back every day or subscribe in a reader or via e-mail. I will have those options set up very soon. This being my very first post it will be up for the week and I will have new posts starting on March 20, 2009. That is the first day of spring and a great day to start saving money! Until then, let me know if you have any ideas you'd like to share or questions you'd like to ask.

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1. Turn out the lights when you leave the room, ESPECIALLY the Bathroom!
2. Use cash and put your change in a jar!
3. Turn off the water when brushing your teeth!
4. If you cannot afford it DON'T buy it!
5. Never borrow money to pay off a debt!
6. If you live close to work walk when the weather is nice!
7. If you only need one or two items walk to the store and back!
8. Turn your computer off when you're not using it ESPECIALLY at night!
9. Shop less often and buy in bulk whenever you can!
10. Start a garden in your window or on your deck!
11. Ask your credit card company for a better interest rate!
12. Over 55? Become a member of AARP and get discounts everywhere!
13. Got a fireplace? Buy firewood in the summer it is cheaper!
14. Buy next years winter clothing at the end of this winter!
15. Charge your cellphone at work ESPECIALLY if it is a company phone!
16. When your lights burn out switch out light bulbs with fluorescent light bulbs!
17. Unplug appliances that you do not use often!
18. Set your refrigerator thermostat to warmer!
19. Set A/C Thermostat 2 degrees warmer in summer 2 degrees colder in winter!
20. Keep the refrigerator and freezer 75 percent to 85 percent full!