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1. Turn off the fan when you leave a room.

Why? Fans don’t cool the air – they only cool people by blowing warm, still air across their skin. The motor on the fan actually adds heat to the room – another reason to turn it off when you leave.

How: Just like turning off the lights and electronics when you leave a room, turn off the fan. It sets a good example for the younger generation that waste is never a good thing.

2. Close your drapes or drop your window shades during the day.

Why? Keeping sunlight out during the heat of the day keeps the house cooler. In the winter, doing the opposite lets the warm sunlight in.

How: Consider moving your furniture around with the seasons to take advantage of or avoid the sun. Eating breakfast near a sunny window can start your chilly winter day off right.

3. Wash your clothes in cold water.

Why? Ninety percent of the energy used to wash your clothes is for heating the water.

How: Cold water is just as effective for getting clothes clean with today’s high-efficiency washers and cold water-formulated detergents.

4. Wrap or cover foods and drinks in the refrigerator.

Why? When foods release moisture they make the compressor work harder to keep the unit cold.

How: Take a few seconds to put on some plastic wrap to trap that moisture. Better yet, put that food in a reusable container with a lid to avoid having to throw away the plastic wrap.

5. Always use the cold water faucet, unless you really want hot water.

Why? Turning on the hot water faucet (or placing the faucet lever to hot or warm) requires energy to heat the water, even if it doesn’t reach the faucet before you turn it off.

How: Use cold water, especially for cooking. Hot water from the tap absorbs more lead and other contaminants from pipes.

1. Turn off the air or turn up the thermostat. When it’s hot outside, keeping your home cool is a big energy expense. To save on your air conditioning costs, turn off the air conditioning when you’re at work or not home or set your thermostat to 78 degrees. This temperature is optimal for air conditioner efficiency, therefore, you will spend less while keeping your home cool.

2. Turn off the water. Most people leave the water running while they brush their teeth or shave. This not only wastes approximately 3 gallons of water but wastes money too. Instead, before brushing your teeth fill a small cup with water, shut off the faucet and use the cup when you’re ready to rinse. When shaving, fill the sink with water and turn the faucet off until it’s time for your final rinse. Keeping the faucet off is a free way to cut back on energy and water usage.

3. Unplug everything. Turning off your television and laptop are great ways to conserve energy, however, you can reduce even more energy by unplugging your television, laptop, hair straightener and chargers. Many electronic devices and appliances draw power even when they’re switched off. Unplugging is a quick, free way to reduce your energy costs.

4. Wash large loads. When washing the dishes or clothes, its best to fill the washer or dishwasher with the largest load possible. When these appliances run, even if they are on a small load setting, they often use just as much water and energy as a full load. According to ENERGY STAR, washing full loads can save you more than 3,400 gallons of water each year. Given the average American family spends about $474 annually on water and sewage charges, this is an easy way to reduce that cost.

5. Take colder showers. Most families have at least one person who thoroughly enjoys taking long, hot showers that steam up the entire bathroom. Did you know that if you take colder showers you can save on two monthly bills? By taking colder showers you can save on your energy and water bill because hardly anyone enjoys staying in a cold shower for a while! Start getting everyone in your family to take colder, shorter showers!

6. Keep windows up while driving on the highway. Although keeping your windows down instead of blasting the AC while driving around town can save gasoline, this isn’t the case when driving on highways. When driving at higher speeds on the highway, having the windows down will create a drag that decreases fuel economy. This easy, fuel saving tip is important to keep in mind when commuting to work or heading on a road trip.

7. Cook outside. Using the oven in your kitchen heats your home, resulting in a greater need for the air conditioning to stay on and at full blast. Cooking outside is a great alternative so you can keep the heat out of your house and leave the thermostat at the most energy efficient temperature. Definitely take advantage of the summer weather and use your grill.

8. Let it air dry. Whether it be your hair or clothes that need drying, let them air dry before going straight to the hair dryer or clothes dryer. A typical clothes dryer uses around 3,000 watts per hour. This means that letting even one load of your clothes air dry instead of using a dryer is equivalent to avoiding

1. End the thermostat wars

When you work from home you get the added benefit of being in control of your workspace temperature. Instead of turning into an icicle at the office, you can be an icicle in the comfort of your own home!
Just kidding. But you should try not to touch the thermostat too often or too heavily condition your space. The perfect temperature varies by location, but 78 degrees is a good target in warmer weather. When it’s cooler, try 68 degrees instead.
Ceiling fans can help lower that temperature further – by about 4 degrees. Just make sure to turn the fan off when you leave the room or you’ll be defeating the purpose (say it with us: fans cool people, not rooms).
Some reports say paying to attention to your thermostat setting could save you 6-8 percent on your next bill. This is also the perfect excuse to break out those fuzzy socks or flamingo shorts you could never wear to the office. Just remember not to stand up during your next video call.

2. Leave last minute meals behind

The microwave is the most energy-efficient appliance in your kitchen, which means you should use it for meals as much as you can.
If you would usually meal prep for work in the office, stick with it when working from home. Batch cooking with the oven once or twice per week is a lot more sustainable than using it every day. That goes for time management too, so you can spend less of your workday figuring out what to eat for lunch.

3. Keep up with work-life balance

One of the downfalls to working from home is that it all seems to blend together – the meetings, the meals, the days (what even is the weekend?) – but this tip can help control that and save you money.
A study from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) explained that electronics in sleep mode account for 23 percent of your energy use at home.
“Although we’ve known about the problem for years, idle load consumption continues to increase. Previous studies have estimated that it represents 10, or at most 20, percent of home-energy use,” the NRDC reported.
Instead, save that quarter of your energy bill by just turning your electronics off when you’re done. You can do this for each one or get a power strip and switch them all off at once.
What’s that? Unplug your computer?! That just might help you stop answering emails after hours, too.

4. Here comes the sun

Work from home got you feeling low? Take advantage of the natural lighting in your home for financial and emotional savings.
Using sunlight to power your ability to see your notebook means you don’t need to turn on the lights, and it’s good for your mental and physical health. You’re not stuck in a cubicle anymore, so try to set up your work area in front of a window.
Enjoy the view of your neighbor struggling to push their lawnmower and say hello to lower energy usage and lower blood pressure – something we could all use right now.

5. Above all, stay connected

But the most important tip to take to heart? Don’t disconnect completely. Your energy use may go up but do what you can to stay in touch with the people you care about. It is likely that the extra expense will even out.
Being at home more often could add up to an extra $100 in energy costs per month, according to Quartz. However, there many other expenses that aren’t happening right now, such as eating out and commuting.
“There are some people for whom that exceeds commuting costs, but I suspect for the vast majority of people, what they’re saving on and the commuting cost is greater than what it is costing them in extra energy costs,” said energy economist Severin Bornstein in the Quartz report.
If you’re worried about how much you’re spending on energy or can’t pay your bills, many Texas providers are offering flexible payment options. The Public Utility Commission has also established an energy bill emergency fund. If your energy bill is still out of control, consider switching to a different plan that better fits your new needs. If your provider goes out of business, the Public Utility Commission of Texas will automatically switch you to a new provider and you will not go without power.

1. Mini garden or terrarium: Fill the bulb with a little bit of soil and pot some tiny plants inside. This project looks good resting on a flat surface, but you can also dangle the gardens from the ceiling with string or fishing line.

2. Money gift: This project is perfect for anyone who enjoys a good pun. Instead of putting a cash gift in a card or envelope, put it in a light bulb. Stuff rolled up dollar bills inside. Now, attach a tag to the light bulb that says “Here’s to your bright future!”

3. Hanging vase: Light bulbs can make cute tiny vases for plants as well. Fill the bulb with water and place a plant inside. Then hang the vase with string or fishing line.

4. Glass hot-air balloon models: Paint the outside of a light bulb with bright colors so it looks like a small hot-air balloon. Repeat this step with several other bulbs to create a hanging mobile for a child’s bedroom. Simply paint multiple bulbs and hang them from the ceiling with fishing line so it looks like they’re floating in midair. Attach the fishing line with a dab of glue with a hot-glue gun. 

5. Air plant bulb: Place an air plant inside. Dangle the bulb with string or fishing line.

1. Know where you’re using energy. Understanding where you’re using the most energy in your home is key to knowing how to lower your electricity bills. The SaveOnEnergy usage calculator can help you estimate where you consume the most electricity and how you can lower your usage.

2. Talk to your landlord. There’s no harm in asking the building’s owner to make some upgrades that could save you money and increase the value of the property. If the answer is no, ask if you can still make some of the changes yourself and if the owner would reimburse you. Also, be sure to report leaky faucets, toilets, or broken appliances to your landlord immediately. Malfunctioning appliances are not working efficiently and can bump up your energy bill.

3. Replace the air filter. When your air filter is past its prime, your HVAC system has to work harder to circulate air throughout your home. Replace your air filter every three months to ensure it’s working efficiently and to protect yourself from allergies.

4. Adjust your water heater’s temperature. If you have access to your water heater, turning down the temperature can really reduce your heating costs. If you live in an apartment and can’t access the water heater on your own, ask your landlord for help.

5. Use energy-efficient lighting. Choose LED light bulbs, especially for light fixtures and lamps that you use often. Energy Star-certified LEDs use up to 90 percent less energy and last 15 times longer than standard bulbs. You can also cut down on lighting costs by turning off lights and ceiling fans in unused rooms.

6. Avoid energy vampires. Energy vampires are devices and appliances that consume electricity even when they’re not being used. Beware of items like phone chargers, toasters, and gaming consoles that you might normally leave plugged in when you aren’t using them. Simply unplugging these devices can solve this issue, but you can also use power strips to easily turn everything off at once.

7. Adjust your thermostat. If you leave for work every day, bump your thermostat up a few degrees in the summer or down in the winter so you aren’t paying to heat or cool an empty apartment or home. If you have any control over the type of thermostat, choosing a smart thermostat can allow you to program the temperature in advance so you don’t have to do it manually every day. Remember, air conditioning in the summer takes up 12 percent of the average energy bill. Making small adjustments to your thermostat can really add up.

8. Invest in energy-efficient kitchen appliances. If your kitchen is not furnished or your landlord is open to upgrading the appliances that are already there, choosing energy-efficient appliances can make a huge difference in energy costs. For example, an Energy Star-certified refrigerator uses between 15 and 40 percent less electricity than non-certified models.

9. Have an energy-efficient laundry day. A washing machine uses about 90 percent of its energy heating up water. Washing your clothes in cold water can greatly reduce electricity usage. There are also other small ways to lower your energy costs when doing laundry, including cleaning your dryer’s lint trap often and washing larger loads of clothing. See our full guide to laundry-related energy savings for more information.

10. Weatherstrip your windows. If you’re a renter, you probably won’t be able to replace your windows entirely. But simply using weatherstrips can lower your energy bill by 15 percent. Weatherstripping properly keeps air conditioning and heating inside your home and prevents outside air from coming in. SaveOnEnergy’s guide to weatherstripping covers the different types of weatherstrips and how to install them.

11. Keep air vents and radiators clear. Don’t put furniture in front of or over your air vents or radiators. This blocks or redirects airflow where you don’t need it and forces your HVAC system to work harder to heat or cool your home.

12. Use rugs on hardwood floors. During the winter, laying down rugs on hardwood floors can create more insulation and help to warm your apartment or home.

13. Shower efficiently. We’ve already discussed how heating up water requires a lot of energy. Cutting back on how long you shower or bumping the water temperature down can lower how much electricity your water heater uses. You can also save energy by investing in an energy-efficient showerhead. A new showerhead can save you up to $145 in energy costs each year and you can bring it with you to your next home if you move.

1. Buy a fire-resistant tree. If you’re shopping for an artificial tree this year, make sure you purchase one labeled “fire retardant.” This doesn’t mean the tree won’t catch fire, but it will resist burning and can be extinguished quickly if it does catch fire.

2. Find the freshest tree. If you’re using a real tree, make sure you find one that’s fresh. It should be green with needles that are hard to pull from the branch and bend instead of break. Once you’ve got your tree home, cut the bottom at a 45 degree angle and stick it in water to keep it fresh. Allowing your tree to dry out makes it more likely to catch fire from electrical sparks.

3. Place outdoor lights outdoors. This one may seem like a no brainer, but if you plan to hang lights outside, they need to be designed specifically for the outdoors. Retailers sell lights designed to handle inclement weather outdoors, while indoor lights could be damaged by snow or rain and pose an electrical hazard if used outside.

4. Use insulated hooks. Hanging lights with nails, tacks or screws can pierce the cable on a string of lights. Instead, hang your lights with insulated hooks to avoid any electrical emergencies.

5. Check your lights. Before you string lights up on your tree or in your yard, make sure they are functioning properly. Plug them in to see if all the lights turn on. If not, unplug the strand and replace the broken bulbs. And make sure you look for frayed wires or cracked cords. If you find that your lights have some damage, toss them out. You don’t want your lights to short and cause a fire.

6. Examine labels. Christmas lights should be tested and verified by third-party laboratory Underwriters Laboratories. UL ensures products meet safety requirements for risks such as electrical problems and fire. Before you buy a box of new bulbs, make sure they meet this standard and have a UL label. A set of indoor lights will have a green holographic UL sticker on the cord, while indoor/outdoor lights will have a red sticker.

7. Keep an eye on extension cords. Make sure your extension cords don’t overheat. Every once in a while just touch the cord to measure its temperature. If it’s hot, unplug it. Also, ensure that any connector pieces are off of the ground with a brick or rock. If the connector piece is left on the ground, snow, rain or dirt can find its way into the plug, creating a hazard.

8. Don’t overload. If you put up a lot of lights each year, it’s important to distribute your light strands among multiple extensions cords.  Each extension cord comes with a wattage rating. If the combined wattage of your lights exceeds that of your cord, it can overheat. The U.S. Fire Administration recommends linking no more than three strands of lights. However, if you’re using energy saving LEDs, the U.S. Department of Energy says it’s safe to connect 25 strands end to end.

9. Turn off the lights. You shouldn’t leave your Christmas lights on all the time. Not only does it add up on you electricity bill, it’s also a safety issue. This holiday season make sure you unplug the lights whenever you’re not home or sleeping.

10. Pack it away. When the holidays are over, pack up your Christmas lights in well-sealed containers. This will prevent potential water damage and also hinder rodents from chewing on the cords.

For more than a decade, electric cars have been slowly growing in popularity throughout the United States. As prices continue to fall and the state and federal governments continue to provide incentives in the form of tax breaks, consumers are seeing the benefits.

Innovation in the automotive world combined with growing environmental awareness have thrust all-electric vehicles more into the mainstream. Consumer acceptance, government support and the billions of dollars invested by auto manufacturers have been a boon to the industry. Electric cars are no longer just for the environmentally minded, they now actually make financial sense. But zero-emission cars still lag considerably behind their carbon-emitting, combustion-engine siblings.

Looking at historical Google search data for searches involving the term “electric car” dating to January 2004, it would seem that overall interest in all-electric cars has remained flat over the past 13 years. However, the data offers some interesting insights into the consumer sentiment on electric-powered vehicles.

The chart below highlights Google search trends for electric cars in the United States between January 2004 and January 2017.

Read the full report!

Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC, TX
In the fifth spot is Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC in Texas. Home to deregulation, the Lone Star State runs things a bit differently where energy utility companies are concerned. That being said, Oncor still has 3,620,619 customers. Unfortunately, those customers also saw the most outages in the year within our top five largest utilities, with an average of 1.69 outages per customer. Those outages lasted an average of three hours and 25 minutes.

Commonwealth Edison Co., IL
With 4,141,211 ratepayers, Commonwealth Edison Co. in Illinois is the fourth largest energy utility in the country. Outages lasted on average two hours, but most customers only experienced one or no outages over the course of 2018.

Florida Power & Light, FL
Florida Power & Light in (you guessed it) Florida had 5,124,326 customers in 2018, landing them in the third spot for largest U.S. energy utility companies. It also had the fewest and shortest outages, with the average outage, if customers even experienced one, lasting just over an hour.

Southern California Edison Co., CA
California energy utility Southern California Edison Co. comes in second with a grand total of 5,188,238 customers. Their ratepayers saw on average less than one outage per year in 2018, and the ones who experienced an outage usually had their power back in a little over two hours.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co., CA
Pacific Gas & Electric Co., also located in the Golden State, is the largest utility in the country, serving 5,407,097 customers in 2018. However, compared to the other four largest utilities, it also had the longest outages, lasting an average of five hours.

Oncor
Oncor is the largest electric utility company in Texas and the fifth largest utility in the country. It serves more than 10 million Texans and has a distribution network spanning more than 139,000 miles across the Lone Star State.

This utility company was founded in 1912 and is headquartered in Dallas. It also services Waco, Fort Worth, Midland, and Odessa.

Oncor maintains that it is devoted to innovative energy options. The utility has pledged to invest $600 million in smart-grid technology, such as smart meters and grid solutions that can predict and solve power outages before they occur. Oncor also operates a program called Super Safe Kids, which provides lessons and activities to educate children on electrical safety.

CenterPoint Energy
CenterPoint Energy is the second-largest electric utility in Texas. It delivers natural gas and electricity to more than 7 million residents and businesses across eight states, including Texas, Ohio, Arkansas, and Indiana.

Based in Houston, CenterPoint has operated for more than 140 years, making it the oldest utility in Texas. This utility was originally founded as Houston Gas Light Company – the company changed its name several times over the years before settling on CenterPoint Energy in 2002.

CenterPoint Energy invests in literacy and STEM programs across its service areas, with a particular emphasis on under-resourced or marginalized areas. Through the CenterPoint Energy Foundation, the utility invests in grant funding for affordable housing, sustainability, and education.

AEP Texas
AEP – also known as American Electric Power – operates in six states and Washington D.C. and provides electricity and natural gas to residential and business customers.

AEP Texas, which is a unit of American Electric Power, is headquartered in Corpus Christi and services more than a million meters. Its service territory spans over 97,000 square miles.

Last year, AEP Texas donated $1.6 million to nonprofits and social services agencies. Through initiatives such as the AEP Foundation, the utility provides aid to organizations focused on STEM, the arts and culture, environmental sustainability, and more.

Texas-New Mexico Power
Texas-New Mexico Power – also referred to as TNMP – is the fourth largest utility in Texas. It delivers electricity to approximately 255,000 homes and businesses across the Lone Star State. Major regions that TNMP serves include Houston, Dallas, Forth Worth, and Midland.

TNMP is headquartered in Lewisville and has operated in Texas since 1981. Currently, the utility employs about 400 Texans.

This utility company offers grants to the communities that it serves, including grants for qualifying organizations, safety grants, and employee grants. It also provides energy efficiency measures to residential and commercial customers.

-8 degrees Fahrenheit
In a tie for fifth are Dallas, El Paso, and Dalhart, where the temperature reached a brisk -8 degrees in 1899, 1962, and 1981, respectively. Dalhart also holds the title of “coldest city in Texas,” averaging a low temperature of 16.8 in December.

-9 degrees Fahrenheit
Central Texas takes fourth place, with a temperature of -9 degrees in December of 1983 and again in January of 2010. If the trend continues, Killeen, Temple, and the rest of Bell County have about 20 years left before the next negative temperature reading.

-11 degrees Fahrenheit
In 1984, the Texas Panhandle city of Amarillo hit a bone-chilling -11 degrees, making this the third coldest day that Texas has ever seen.

-22 degrees Fahrenheit
Coming in with the second coldest day in Lone Star State history, leaps and bounds colder than its third through fifth place counterparts, is the -22-degree reading on January 4, 1959 in Spearman. It might not be the coldest city according to the media, but we’ve certainly crossed it off our list of “warm places to live.”

-23 degrees Fahrenheit
And in first place, a horrific how-does-anything-even-live-here measurement of -23 degrees Fahrenheit, in Tulia on February 12, 1899 and again in Seminole on February 8, 1933. That’s right, Texas is so over the top even its weather felt compelled to hit residents with this frostbite-inducing temperature twice.

So, it turns out the Lone Star State might not actually be the hot weather paradise we always imagine it to be – but it’s by no means the arctic either. The coldest winter on record was 1898-1899 with an average low of 42.5 degrees. Despite the occasional ice age, that’s a number we can live with.

June 26 and 27, 1980 – 113 degrees
This was a record summer in Texas as temperatures soared into astonishingly high numbers in Dallas and Fort Worth. For the record, the average Texas high in June clocks in around 92 degrees, so these temperatures likely took Texans by surprise.

June 30, 1994 and July 23, 2018 – 114 degrees
There are two dates that tied for the fourth hottest day in Texas. In 1994, El Paso temperatures hit an impressive 114 degrees. Twenty-four years later, Waco’s summer temperature hit the same level. Hopefully residents of these two regions were prepared with some ways to beat the heat.

June 27, 1994 – 116 degrees
The month of June 1994 is on our list again with another scorching hot day. These extreme temperatures spanned over several Texas regions, but Midland–Odessa experienced the highest temperature of 116 degrees. Residents of Midland-Odessa truly learned the value of an energy-efficient air conditioner during the summer of 1994.

June 28, 1980 – 117 degrees
The summer of 1980 will certainly go down in history as one of the toastiest summers on the record! Wichita Falls’ temperature reached 117 degrees on this day – but record-high temperatures in the triple digits lasted throughout the weekend.

August 12, 1936 and June 28, 1994 – 120 degrees
As crazy as it sounds, there are two dates that tie for the hottest day in Texas history. The heatwave of 1994 earned the most spots on this list, but the summer of 1936 is the earliest super-hot day in history. On August 12, 1936, Fort Worth and Seymour clocked in intimidating temperatures reaching 120 degrees.

With so many supremely hot days on the record, it’s no wonder Texas is known for its heat. During the summer months, Texans have learned it’s important to have energy-efficient air conditioners and a solid electricity plan – both of which will keep your energy bills from reaching record highs as well!