Reduce your Electricity Bill
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Bright ideas to help you save money.
Electricity. It's an almost universal constant in our modern lives. Like death and taxes, most of us never think about it... until the bill comes due. Unlike those proverbial constants, you have the power to reduce your electricity bills and avoid a high electric bill. From the reasonable to the radical, there are plenty of steps you can take to lower your energy costs. Ideas to reduce electricity bills fall into three basic categories:
1) Use Less 2) shop 3) Get Discounts and Credits
Below, we'll explore each of these options. Join our blog to continue exploring ways to save money on electricity or share your own money saving tips.
We all know that turning off the light when you leave the room is a good idea, but when it's time to get serious about reducing your electricity bills, where do you start?
Understand Your Usage
The first step is understanding where you use electricity. This audit will help you identify where you’re using electricity so you can reduce your electricity usage and lower your electric bill. This home energy audit will help you identify areas for improvement in making your home more energy efficient.
Improve Control
If you haven’t replaced your thermostat in the last five years, you are in for a surprise. Programmable thermostats? Good, but a thing of the past. New thermostats are wi-fi or z-wave enabled, so you can manage the thermostat through your smart phone. Forget to adjust the thermostat? Control it from your phone, tablet or PC. Some home automation systems even adjust the thermostat automatically when you set your alarm system.
Honeywell Wi-Fi Smart Thermostat |
| Amazon Rating: 4 stars |
| Mobile App: Yes |
| LCD Display: Yes |
Honeywell 7 Day Programmable Wi-Fi Enabled Thermostat |
| 4 stars |
| Yes |
| No |
Nest Learning Thermostat - 2nd Generation T200577 |
| 4 stars |
| Yes |
| Yes |
ecobee EB-STAT-02 Smart Thermostat 4 Heat-2 Cool with Full Color Touch Screen |
| 4 stars |
| Yes |
| Yes |
Monitor Your Usage
Most customers in Texas have access to their usage data in 15-minute intervals, through Smart Meter Texas. To manage all this data, some retail electricity providers report this data to you, so you can easily track usage week over week by day and time of day, with weather overlays. Here’s an example from Champion Energy.
Check
your Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system regularly for dirt and grime. A dirty filter can really slow down your HVAC system's airflow. It makes your system work harder to keep you warm or cool and consequently, costs you more money. You can also get an annual or semi-annual tune-up of your HVAC system to help it run more efficiently.
Clean or replace
air filters every 3 month – A dirty filter can make your system work harder and run longer than necessary. They also encourage the buildup of mold and mildew, making cleaning more difficult.
Shade
outside air conditioning units – A/C units shaded by trees or other means work more efficiently and use up to 10% less electricity.
Clean
your A/C’s condenser/evaporator coils at the beginning of the season. Clean coils lower your energy costs, extend the unit’s life and provide cleaner air for you to breathe.
The Oven
- Think glass. Glass and ceramic pans allow you to reduce cooking temps by 25°F. The best part? You don’t have to increase your cooking time.
- No peeking. Well, keep it to a minimum at least. Try to keep your oven door closed while baking. Every time you open it, you’re losing up to 50°!
- Nix the Aluminum Foil. Food cooks more efficiently in ovens where air can circulate freely. Foil traps heat, making the cooking process inefficient. Tip* Stagger pans on upper and lower racks to improve airflow.
The Stovetop
- Use a flat-bottomed pan. Cookware that’s flat maintains good contact with the heat below it, allowing for better distribution of energy.
- Let trapped heat do some of the work. Turn off your stove burner a few minutes early when boiling your pastas and veggies. The hot water and steam will continue to cook those side dishes so you don’t have to use all that extra energy.
- If you like it, then put a lid on it. Cooking without lids can use up to THREE TIMES as much energy. Don’t let heat escape!
- Keep the pressure on. Pressure cookers cook at higher temperatures and reduce cooking time.
- Keep water use to a minimum. The more water you use, the more energy is required to bring it to a boil and keep it at that higher temp.
The Fridge
- Close the door when you’re done. We all have opened the fridge up and stared into it for a while, dreaming our favorite treat will magically appear. Let’s be mindful that there are better ways to cool off your kitchen. Try not to keep the fridge door open longer than necessary.
- Cool off your food before storing it. Putting warm food in the fridge raises the temperature. The fridge has to work hard to lower it—this can bump up your energy costs.
- Don’t overfill it. Much like overeating during the holidays, going over capacity in any sense can be a bad thing. Overfilling the fridge, in particular can block air vents, restrict air circulation and reduce energy efficiency.
- Keep it at the right temps. 38°-40° is optimal.
The Microwave
- Great for leftovers – Microwaves use 30-80% less energy than conventional ovens when reheating food.
The Dishwasher
- Load it up – Dishwashers use the same amount of water regardless of how full they are; full loads equal fewer loads. Running it once in the evening will use less water and energy than washing the dishes by hand throughout the day.
- Economy mode – Many dishwashers have optional settings that consume less energy and water.
- Air dry – Letting your dishes air dry instead of using the heated dry cycle will reduce your energy usage.
The incandescent light bulbs that we have been so used to are starting to phase out as the introduction of LED (Light Emitting Diode lamps) and CFLs (Compact Fluorescent lamps) prove to be more energy efficient and cost effective for your home. They use up to 80 percent less energy and can last up to 25 times longer.
CFLs were introduced in the 90s as a replacement to incandescent bulbs to be more energy efficient for your home. However, with advancement in technology, LED lighting saves energy, lasts longer, and produces less heat, helping you reduce your electricity bills.
Lower Energy Bill
LEDs require significantly less electricity than traditional incandescent bulbs. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, replacing your 60-watt incandescents with 12-watt LEDs will reduce your per-bulb electricity costs by about 70 to 80 percent – a greater reduction than you’d achieve with CFLs, halogen lamps or energy-saving incandescents.
Why LEDs are better than CFLs
Spend Less on Light Bulbs
- Replacing light bulbs with LED light bulbs will last longer.
- Get the same amount of light for less money. Upgrading 15 of the inefficient incandescent light bulbs in your home could save you about $50 per year.
Windows
During hot months, keep window coverings closed on the south, east and west windows.
Vents
If you have central air conditioning, do not close vents in unused rooms. This could increase pressure and cause leaks in your ducts.
Laundry
When washing and drying clothes, make sure to adjust your washing cycle to match the size of the load and use cold water whenever possible. Use the low heat setting on the dryer when you can.
Leaks
- Caulk it up. Add caulk or weather-stripping to seal air leaks around leaky doors and windows.
- Find and seal leaks. Seal the air leaks around utility cut-throughs for pipes (“plumbing penetrations”), gaps around chimneys and recessed lights in insulated ceilings, and unfinished spaces behind cupboards and closets.
At the end of the day there is only so much we can do to reduce energy consumption in the household. Shopping for electricity in Texas can get convoluted, but we want to point out the things you should look at when comparing energy providers.
Read the Fine Print
In Texas, electricity providers are required by the PUCT (Public Utility Commission) to produce an EFL (Electricity Facts Label) for each energy product. Things you want to look for in the EFL and Terms of Service include:
- Are there additional fees to get a bill in the mail?
- Are there fees to call customer service?
- Are you required to sign up for automatic bill payment?
- If you are promised a financial incentive or gift card, are there specific requirements to receive it?
- Is it an introductory rate or a fixed rate? Intro rates and month to month plans may look great initially, but we recommend fixed rate plans.
Check their stats
You wouldn't buy a car based solely on price. You’d do your homework with by checking the Kelly Blue Book and Consumer Reports, and by reading reviews. Like a car, it’s important to compare electricity companies. Below are some resources to help you compare retail electricity providers.
- J.D. Power
- Review Sites like TexasElectricityRatings.com or ConsumerAffairs.com
- Better Business Bureau
- Retail Electric Provider Complaint Scorecard
Find out how long they have been in business
Occasionally these "fly by night" businesses come into the market with prices too good to be true. And sometimes, that may be the case. You can look up a retail electric provider on this site to see how long they have been licensed, where their offices are located and who their parent company is. Is that Texas retailer an electricity provider located in Texas?
Here’s a handy checklist to help you shop for an electricity provider using our provider of choice (Champion Energy Services) as an example. Click here to print
How much do they charge? | ||
| Champion Energy Services | Your Provider | |
| Price | Visit championenergyservices.com for pricing | |
| Minimum Usage Fee | $6.95 for Usage Under 800kWh | |
| Term | 1 month to 36 months | |
Have happy customers? | ||
| J. D. Power Rankings |  | |
| Customer Reviews | | |
| BBB Rating | A+ | |
| Public Utility Commission Complaints | Ranked low | |
| Number of years in business | 9 | |
What's their customer service like? | ||
| Customer Service Hours | 24/7 | |
| Customer Service Chat | | |
Convenient billing options? | ||
| Free paper bill | | |
| Free choice of payment options | | |
| Free customer service | | |
Will they keep you informed? | ||
| Weekly usage reports | | |
| Renewal reminders | | |
Love Your Electricity Provider
We recommend Champion Energy Services as your energy provider. They have been in business since 2002 and have award winning customer care in the Texas residential retail electricity market. Compare their rates by filling out your zip code below.
Bill Credits can Add Up
Some retail electricity providers in Texas allow customers to earn bill credits by referring their friends and family. These bill credits can really add up for your and can benefit your friends. Below is some information about Champion Energy's program, Connect-a-Friend.
The Champion Energy's Connect-a-Friend referral program offers customers a $25 bill credit for referring a friend. And, their friend also gets a $25 bill credit.
Customers can use referral tools that Champion Energy provides, such as posts for Facebook and Twitter.
Customers receive an email each time their referral code is used. New customers receive their referral code shortly after they become a customer.
There are no limits to the credits available.
Electricity Discounts for Low Income Customers
The LITE-UP TEXAS program is designed to help qualified low-income individuals living in an area where they can choose their service provider, reduce the monthly cost of electric service. The program will provide discounts to eligible customers in May, June, July, August and September bills.
An electric customer is qualified if the customer is currently receiving: Medicaid and SNAP, or if your household income is at or below 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
Click here for more information.
Local Utility Programs and Discounts
Each local electricity delivery company in Texas is required by the State to provide energy efficiency programs. Many of these programs provide free or low cost ways to reduce electric bills, such as lighting upgrades, free trees, and tune-ups.
You can find information on your local utility’s programs here:
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