You pay attention to your electric bill each month and have noticed an increase but can’t pin point why? It can be hard to budget when your energy cost fluctuates with no rhyme or reason. While it can be easy to blame your utility company for the increase, it’s more likely usage that is the reason for the uptick in your bill. Here are five things to watch for to help decrease your electricity bill.

1. Watch Your Appliances and Unplug Them When You Aren’t Using Them.

One of the top reasons your electricity bill may be so high is because appliances or electronics are plugged in regardless if you are using them or not. This is a recent problem with more modern appliances because they draw electricity even when they are turned off. Here’s the thing – technology doesn’t power down. So even hitting a “power” button on an appliance or an electronic basically turns the machine into standby mode. It doesn’t actually shut it down. This allows the unit to power back on faster, which is something we’re all accustomed to.

The issue is that the machine doesn’t fully power down and continues to pull electricity out and increases your electric bill. The best way to fix this issue is to plug appliances into power strips and turn off the strips when the appliances are not in use.

2. Beware of Larger Appliances.

Larger appliances like washers, dryers, dishwashers are huge energy suckers that can drive your power bill through the roof. The average family does over 400 loads of laundry a year. Each load may use over 40 gallons of water for a full load. Many people don’t always use the machine to the highest capacity.

The best way to make sure that you aren’t wasting money on these appliances is to load them to capacity when using a dishwasher or washing machine and change to one load a week if possible.

3. Monitor Lighting and Ceiling Fans.

Did you know that using lights to change the brightness of an entire room is not the best use of your electric bill? Using lighting to help with specific areas in the space like chairs, tables, and workspaces will help keep energy costs lower than large overhead lights to try to cover the entire space.

Also, try to keep lights off when you aren’t using the room. Ceiling fans will only keep the temperature down in the room that it’s installed in. Keeping a ceiling fan on when no one is in the room, only increases an energy bill and doesn’t increase the comfort of anyone else in the home.

To keep costs low, turn lights off in areas that are not occupied and change out lightbulbs from incandescent bulbs for energy-efficient bulbs. Be sure to turn off ceiling fans when a room is unoccupied.

4. Replace Appliances When Past Their Prime.

Appliances that have seen better days drain more energy than newer energy-efficient units on the market today. If your current appliances are ready for replacement, consider turning them in for newer models with an Energy Star rating that will significantly impact your electricity bill and help keep your costs low.

5. Charging Devices All At Once.

Look around your home – do you see chargers plugged into every open outlet? Phones, laptops, tablets, game systems, etc. all need charging cords that take energy and increase your utility bill. The more gadgets you have in your home, the higher you can expect your bill each month.

Remember – unplug your adapters when you aren’t using them. This will prevent them from pulling in electricity when they aren’t actively charging a device.

The next time you notice your electric bill has gone sky high, remember to look for these five things and start making some small changes to help with lowering your utility costs.

Not only can these changes help with lowering your electric bill, but keeping a close eye on your appliances will also help ensure that you catch any potential threats that could cause house fires.

Fire Damage Restoration Services from McMahon Services and Construction of Hainesville, IL

If fire damage occurs due to faulty chargers or electrical wiring, McMahon services can help with restoration and clean up. Call us for 24/7 fire restoration services and we will begin the cleanup process immediately to help restore your home back to normal.