Be the hero of your house with these smart ways to save energy room-by-room.
Get the link to the live interactive guide pictured here below.

Trump doesn’t need to speak for you when it comes to fighting climate change. Even though he wants to pull the U.S. out of the Paris Accord, you can show him you disagree by practicing smart ways to save energy at home. How?

1) Continue to acknowledge that climate change is a real threat.

2) Do your own part to save energy.

We’ve teamed up with StarTexPower to bring you 18 smart ways to save energy at home. Just go to this live graphic and click on any room in the house. You’ll get three tips per room to help you save energy at home.

Smart Ways to Save Energy At Home

Keep in mind these important room-by-room tips:

In The Living Room

⇒Seal air leaks around windows and doors.

⇒Change your furnace filter every 3 months.

⇒Adjust your thermostat by 10-15 degrees, especially when you’re away at work or when you go to bed.

Of the $2,000 you probably spend on energy annually, $200 to $400 could be going to waste from drafts, air leaks around openings, and outdated heating and cooling systems, reports Energy.gov.

Save as much as 30% on your energy bill by sealing the leaks.

Remember that dirty filters can slow down air flow and force your furnace to work harder.

Adjusting your thermostat by 10-15 degrees for at least 8 hours a day can cut your heating bill by 5-20% annually.

In Your Bedroom

⇒Use ceiling fans instead of air conditioning. Fans topically cost only 1 cen per day, says StarTex, while making the room feel 3-8 degrees cooler.

⇒Hang insulating drapes to keep rooms cooler during the summer and warmer in winter.

In The Kitchen And Laundry 

⇒Wash full loads.

⇒Replace older appliances, including refrigerators
and washing machines, with Energy Star products

⇒Air dry dishes. Use clothes lines and drying racks to dry clothes

In the Bathroom

⇒Lower the thermostat on your water heater. For every 10 degrees you reduce the temperature, you can save 3 to 5% on your bill.

⇒Take shorter showers.

⇒Switch to water-efficient faucets and shower heads to enjoy the same quality but save energy.

Outside

⇒Plant deciduous trees – the kind that drop their leaves in the fall.

Planting on the west side of the house to create shade and help keep your house cool can reduce your air conditioning costs by up to 30%.

You can find more smart ways to save energy at StarTexPower.com. Look for their hashtag, #energylifehacks.

NOTE: Partners and sponsors enable us to bring you the expert content you want at no cost to you. Our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks!

The post 18 Smart Ways to Save Energy at Home appeared first on Big Green Purse.

If you’re shopping for a new dishwasher, what are your top concerns?

Noise levels? Color? Price? You might not even put “energy efficient” on the list! And if you do, you might not know how to figure out which dishwasher actually saves energy.

That’s a mistake.

We’re partnering with Constellation Energy to remind you why energy efficiency needs to be a priority when you shop.

We’re also going to tell you what to look for, including the #1 secret that will make sure you get the most efficient model to meet your needs.

But first, why bother?

Dishwashers and other home appliances use a lot of electricity. For most of us that still means we’re relying on polluting fossil fuels like coal for power. And you know what happens every time your local utility burns coal? The air gets dirtier, the atmosphere gets filled with more carbon dioxide, and climate change gets worse.

The less energy your dishwasher uses, the cleaner it is to operate. But that’s not all.

The more efficient it is, the more money it saves on your electric bill, too.

Constellation projects you’ll save up to $35 a year on electricity with a more efficient model – enough to pay for several boxes or bottles of dishwashing detergent.

Plus, an energy-efficient dishwasher offers another benefit that’s good for the environment as well as your pocketbook: it uses less water. Take a look at this graphic from Constellation:

And don’t even think that you can save more energy and water by skipping the dishwasher and washing all your dishes by hand! The EPA reports that a new ENERGY STAR certified dishwasher not only cleans dishes better and kills more germs. It uses less than half as much energy as washing dishes by hand and saves more than 5,000 gallons of water each year. That adds up to big savings, too!

So…how do you know which dishwashers are energy efficient?

The Secret is…Look for those that are ENERGY STAR certified.

ENERGY STAR is a program created by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to motivate manufacturers to build and sell highly efficient appliances like dishwashers. An appliance that bears the ENERGY STAR logo uses a LOT less energy and water than one that does not. According to EPA:

“Standard-size dishwashers that have earned the ENERGY STAR are on average 12 percent more energy efficient and 30 percent more water efficient than those that have not.”

Once you locate energy-efficient dishwashers that bear the ENERGY STAR logo, you can then compare other factors, like how quiet they are when they operate, and what other features they offer that will help you save energy. (Here’s a picture of my own dishwasher; the ENERGY STAR label is right on the inside of the door.)

You can also check the yellow Energy Guide label you’ll see on various machines to compare how much energy each machine is projected to use.

After you get your dishwasher home, Constellation says here’s how you can use it to save energy and water and still get your dishes clean.

For more excellent ways to save energy, visit Constellation here.

NOTE: Our partnerships enable us to provide expert content so you can live the green life you want. Our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks.

The post Here’s the #1 Secret to Buying an Energy-Efficient Dishwasher appeared first on Big Green Purse.

What difference does it make if you turn off the lights when you leave a room, install a low-flow shower head, or turn down your water heater a mere 20 degrees? Constellation Energy* shows you exactly why it matters with a cool infographic called 31 Energy Saving Hacks.

These are some of the best energy saving hacks I’ve seen!

Why? Two reasons:

√ One, they cover the major ways you use energy at home: doing the laundry and the dishes, lighting up your rooms and powering your electronics, heating and cooling your home, and showering and bathing.

√ Two, all of them will save you money.

Of the 31 Best Energy Saving Hacks, here are the 5 I like the best (because they’re easy and cost-effective):

1) Skip the rinse on your dishwasher. Using the rinse features costs you 3-7 gallons more of hot water each time you wash your dishes. Wash per usual, then open the door to the dishwasher and pull the wet racks out and let the dishes air dry.

2) Take shorter showers. Cutting just 4 minutes off your shower time can save you over 3,000 gallons of water each year! In a 4-person family, that’s 12,000 gallons.

3) Unplug. You don’t need to keep battery chargers plugged in when the batteries are fully charged. And by the way, unplug other electronics when you’re not using them so they don’t keep drawing power out of the socket (which they do, even when they’re turned off).

4) Clean or replace furnace filters. You find it easier to breathe when your air and nose aren’t obstructed, right? So does your furnace. Give it a clean filter every three months, and breathe easier.

5) Time your water heater. This one never occurred to me before.  You can put a timer on your water heater to turn the heating function down or even off when you’re not home or on vacation. Who knew?

You can see the entire list of Constellation’s energy saving hacks right here.

What’s your favorite energy saving hack? Don’t keep it a secret!

*Note: Sponsored posts allow us to bring you expert content at no cost to you. As ever, our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks!

The post The 31 Best Energy Saving Hacks to Save You Money, Too appeared first on Big Green Purse.