| |
- Enjoy natural light whenever possible. It's free.
- A typical light bulb on 12 hours per day costs $37.50 per year. Burn it for only six hours and save $18.75. Not worth it? Multiply that by the number of light bulbs in your house.
- Replace spent incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents, which use a fraction of the energy. Good candidates for replacement are 60-100W bulbs that are on several hours per day.
- Teach your children energy-saving habits early on. Invest the savings in their future.
- Consider using motion-sensor lights if you have difficulty remembering to turn lights off.
- Keep forgetting to turn your lights out? Install timers to turn lights on and off for you.
- Buy bulbs with the Energy Star label. Bulbs absorb only 5-10% of your total lighting costs (the rest is the electricity they use). So paying a little more up front pays for itself over time.
- Keep bulbs clean. Dirt absorbs as much as 50% of a bulb¹s light.
- Light means bright. Buy light-colored or translucent lampshades and consider painting your walls light colors as well, especially in rooms that receive little natural light.
- Save by using only the light you need. Use three-way bulbs and task lamps to fine-tune your lighting to the atmosphere or need.
- Buy for efficiency. Compact fluorescent bulbs last up to 10 times longer.
- Install low accent lighting along walkways and drives. This costs less than elaborate outdoor lighting and increases safety.
- Avoid cheap, halogen torchière lamps, which can be a fire hazard. A compact fluorescent torchière is not a fire hazard and can save more than $30 per year in electricity costs.
|
| |
|
|
| |
