Alternative Solutions for Saving Money on Your PECO Electric Bill

Most of us have heard of ways to save money on electricity. Installing a solar unit for your roof and buying energy-efficient appliances are two popular means of reducing your PECO electric bill. These large-scale improvements can cost a lot of money, though. If you're looking to save money on electricity without breaking the bank, here are a few little-known tips that will lower your bill and make Mother Nature smile.

Choose Your Energy Provider

A new movement in many states throughout the country is called electricity deregulation. In a nutshell, electricity deregulation lets the homeowner choose his or her energy supplier and the price they're willing to pay for electricity. Prior to electricity deregulation, homeowners had just one choice - their local utility company. Electricity deregulation opens the industry and allows for more competition among private energy suppliers, and that equals more savings for homeowners.

Enhance Energy Efficiency in Your Home

Another great way to save money on your PECO electric bill is to increase energy efficiency in your home. You can do this by taking the following three actions.

* Regularly Inspect Appliances: Like all machines, home appliances, including heat pumps and AC units, should be inspected every year. A leak in an air duct, for instance, can drastically reduce a unit's efficiency and cost a PA homeowner extra cash.

* Clean Filters: We all want to inhale clean air in our home, and blocked air filters make a unit work much harder to filter air pollutants. A super-cheap but helpful way to save money on electricity in your Pennsylvania home is by replacing your filters.

* Purchase AC Units that are the Correct Size: If your home is on the small side, you're better off purchasing a modest air conditioning unit that won't overpower the space. There's no need to expend unnecessary electricity to power a unit too large for your home.

* Seal Windows and Doors: Poor insulation always results in decreased efficiency. With this awareness, we should all take the basic steps to properly seal any cracks along door and window frames. Why continue to waste the cold or warm air that's costing money?

When You're Sleeping, Put Your PC to Sleep

There is a long-running debate over whether or not to turn off your computer when it's not in use. Some skeptics claim that repeatedly turning your computer on and off can harm the machine, despite studies showing that turning off your computer at night actually extends the computer's life.

If you still don't want to turn off your computer at night, there is a compromise. Nowadays, many computers have a sleep mode that uses much less power than the normal mode. Using the hibernate mode can save over 75 dollars a year on electricity.

To save the most energy, turn off and unplug your computer when it's not in use.