7/3/11

The easiest way to save energy when using your washing machine is to always use cold water for your clothes; according to energystar.gov, most of your washer's energy is used on heating the hot water. Besides, many of today's detergents are designed to work more effectively with cold water. Also, always err on using (BEGIN ITALS)less(END ITALS) detergent instead of (BEGIN ITALS)more(END ITALS). Using too much detergent can actually clog your machine and make your washing machine work harder to remove the excess suds.

7/2/11

We all know that we should plug our televisions, DVD players and other entertainment devices into a power strip, so we can simply turn it off when we're not watching TV. But it can be a real pain to go behind all of this equipment to turn it off each time, so we forget or just don't bother. New power strips on the market now come with a remote control, meaning you simply flip a switch to completely shut off power to those devices, saving you money on your electrical bills.

7/1/11

If your home has central air-conditioning, invest in a programmable thermostat to keep the temperature consistent and to maximize the energy savings. One simple tip: Close the vents completely in rooms that are barely used in summer months, like a guest room. This will reroute cold air from those rooms into others and help improve the overall efficiency of your central air-conditioning.