More Money Saving Tips
It feels like spring here in sunny California. For those of you in the rain drenched, tornado affected, flooded parts of the nation, it is coming! It has started me thinking it is time for some changes to our winter habits.
1. Think lighting. With daylight savings time comes a change in when the sun rises and sets. We have placed timers on several lights in our home. Two reasons…1. It helps us because we don’t have to think about turning lights off quite as much. There are always rooms where you turn on the light and then forget to turn it off even though you won’t be in that room again. Bed time comes and as you lock doors you realize the light in the kitchen has been on all that time, or the light in the office. That’s the one I always forget. Consider putting timers on the lamps in your bedrooms. This was always a big money loser for our family. How many times do you go in to your children’s rooms after they have left for school and their light is still on? Set the timer so the light goes off about the time they leave for school or you leave for work. & 2. When you have lights on timers you establish a pattern and anyone watching your home is never sure if you are home or not because the lights go on and off every day at the same time. Most of us place lights and radios on timers when we leave for a few days but if those lights are different from our normal pattern it is pretty obvious to those who may be watching, that we are gone.
2. Pay attention to your window covering. Now that the sunny weather is coming be aware of how you can take advantage of the natural heating and cooling help. Since it is still cool or cold in the morning open all window covering which will let in the warm sunshine. As the hotter weather approaches you will want to keep these same window coverings closed until the morning sun has passed. It really is amazing how much of a difference this can make. If you work and no one is home during the day make sure all your window coverings are closed when you leave.
3. Windows too. As you open the blinds to let in the warm sunlight also open those same windows to let in the warm air. During the summer months when you close the blinds to keep the warm sunshine out open the windows at the other side of the house and let the cool air in. As the sun moves close the windows and blinds and the cool morning air you have let in will help keep your home cool longer, helping to avoid turning on the dreaded, money sucking air conditioner. By noon or 1 o’clock during the summer all your windows should be closed unless it is a cooler day and you have a cooling breeze.
Have a wonderful spring!!
Great blog! Thanks for letting me know about it. I will keep reading.
We are up in the mountains a bit so if we sleep with the windows open at night it cools the house down all day. We don’t have to use the air conditioner until July. We thought about not putting in an air conditioner at all but we found out the first year that July is a pretty miserable month without it!