Switch Your Light Bulbs and Unplug

Standard incandescent bulbs emit a lot of heat and use up electricity.  Try switching to light emitting diode (LED) and compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) bulbs. Not only do they last longer, they use up to 75% less energy than standard bulbs. LED lights are available in a variety of color temperatures and are dimmable.

It is good practice to make sure all lights are turned off when you aren’t at home. You can also unplug your TV, lights, phone chargers, and other electronic items when not in use to save electricity.

In the Kitchen

Your refrigerator is a great place to start saving energy. There are ways to cut down on the amount of energy and electricity that the refrigerator uses.

1. Decide what you want before opening the refrigerator door. Keeping your refrigerator door open can cost money and use up electricity.

2. Lower your refrigerator settings to 1 -2 setting, or just enough to keep cold foods cold and frozen foods from thawing.

Using the dishwasher less will save money and electricity. Make sure when you are washing by hand to fill up the sink to let dishes pre-soak. When you do need to use the dishwasher, a LifeSource water system reduces the amount of detergent you will need by half so dishes come out clean, without all of the chemical residue and carbon imprint.

Your Water

Plastic water bottles are disposable and convenient, but they are terrible to our ecosystem. The energy we waste using bottled water would be enough to power 190,000 homes, according to banthebottle.net.

A reusable water bottle is a great way to help the environment and your wallet. It costs way less to pay once for a reliable, refillable bottle instead of constantly paying for a case of disposable plastic bottles.  Banthebottle.net says that the recommended eight glasses of water a day costs us about $1,400 a year in bottled water, while at US tap rates, it’s only $.49. To make sure your water tastes great, and is free from harmful toxins, you can invest in a LifeSource whole house water filtration system. Every faucet will flow with clean, drinkable water.

Americans used about 50 billion plastic water bottles last year. However, the U.S.’s recycling rate for plastic is only 23 percent, which means 38 billion water bottles – more than $1 billion worth of plastic – are wasted each year.