How to Cut Home Energy Costs

When you consider how much energy the sun puts out every single day, and combine that with how far technology has advanced in the last hundred years, it seems remarkable that there is still no efficient and effective way to harness all that virtually limitless power to create low-cost energy that will heat and cool our houses, run our appliances and get us from one place to another. After all, doesn’t it seem as if it would be much more difficult to figure out how to do the exact same thing by using the remains of million year old dinosaurs? Unless, of course, there’s no way to drive up the price for demand since everybody knows there’s more than enough supply. Hmmm.

Well, until the lost drop of fossil fuel is squeezed out of the last protected piece of land on earth sometime around, oh, probably 2012, cheap solar power will have to remain a theory. And even then, of course, it will still have to compete with the electric power lobby. So, let’s just figure on the sun exploding before it’s ever a really viable source of low-cost energy. For the time being, we’ll just have to figure out how to cut home energy costs as best we can.

There are ways that you can cut your home energy bills by a few dollars each month and most of them are relatively easy to do. A few may require a little bit of know-how or some helpful advice, but almost anyone can do them.

•Check your insulation. Call in a professional and have him give an expert opinion on the status of your home insulation. You’d be surprised at how many houses aren’t adequately insulated. And if you find that you don’t have enough, adding insulation is easier than ever. Depending on the type you need, you can probably do the job yourself.

•Replace filters regularly. At least once a month replace your air conditioner filters. These things are sucking in dust constantly and can quickly become almost useless. During months of high use, consider replacing them every two weeks.