Please help me I need ideas on how to use less electricity my bill is too high

Make sure you just don't turn them off, but UNPLUG as well. Appliances on standby still consume about 25% of energy. Also, you can just hand-wash your clothes or avoid using dishwasher if you use one.

Since heating is obviously the single most expensive item in your electricity usage, that is the thing you should concentrate on reducing first. Are all your heating appliances on thermostats? Do you have a room thermometer? What temperature do you consider 'comfortable'? If your 'comfortable' temperature is 70 degrees, for example, you should consider reducing it by 2 degrees to 68 and compensate by wearing more clothes. Reducing the temperature like this may take some time to get used to (and may involve some small changes in lifestyle, such as NOT being able to wander round in shorts and tees) but this small reduction in ambient temperature will make a huge difference to your bills. If you have a meter that you can read, try making a daily record of units used for a week or so before and after reducing the temperature! If you can control the heat in each room individually, the bedroom should be cooler than the other rooms (not only is it more healthy to sleep in a cooler room, the bedclothes should be enough to keep you warm in bed) and you should only heat the rooms you are actually using.

- Don't bathe. Take a shower instead. - Cook on gas not on electricity. - Use pans with an even bottom. - Always put the lid on the pan while cooking. - Do not heat rooms you don't use. - Grab an extra cover for the night, no need to heat your house then. - Buy energy efficient lamps. Sure it's a big investment at first but they're way more energy efficient. - Only use a tumble dryer when you can't hang up your wet clothes. - Never put apparatuses on stand-by just switch them off. - Have an expert give you advices applicable to your situation at home. That's what I can come up with now.

Ask your electric company when the high and low points of use are. They charge more during peak hours for your electric usually during the day. Changing some habits can make a big difference. Like washing clothes at night or the dishes. Also If your turn the water heater down by 5 degrees (something many do not notice at all) you will save on that heating bill as well. Last but not least when washing clothes turn the water to cold. Many brands of detergent have cold water versions though in honest all of them work any way. By not heating the water you can save a ton of money, Oh and if you can afford to get even a cheap thermostat that can be programmed it can do wonders. See you can set temps in the house for when there are people there and a few degrees lower when they are not. Places like Walmart have the for between $30 -$60 and it is well worth it.

Hello Olydove! I know what you mean about high electric bills. I pay $3,500 a year for power. Heres a few tips: -Isolation is important and you said you've done that, so great!! -Windows: cover them from the inside with plastic. They sell those at any hardware store and if you then use a blower, you can still see outside but the cold air CANT come in and the HOT hair CANT go out. This saves a LOT. -Hot water tank: cover it in insulation....careful for fire, make sure the insulation is not touching any wires. -Make sure you dont have any faucets that leak. You can waste LOTS of hot water that way. -If you have any water pipes running through an exterior wall, make sure they're covered in insulation. -Dryer: Its not recommended to let your wet clothes dry in the house because of the surplus of humidity. So to be sure your dryer runs at its best. Empty the lint basket after EVERY drying. If you use Bounce or any of those sheets in the dryer, you MUST wash the lint basket with a toothbrush and soap after at least every 10 washes. Do the test, pour water on the basket and you'll see it beading, so it means that the water isnt going through, therefore the air wont either. Ive been saving tremendously on drying time ever since Ive started doing this. Do small loads, it drys faster. -Try not to use your oven too often. Microwave instead and UNPLUG it after using it as that clock takes energy. -Lower the thermostats. -Low energy light bulbs. Yes they might save electricity BUT and there is a BUT, you cant be closer than 3 feet from them. They emit some kind of rays and they're filled with mercury. Just be sure you turn the lights off when you're not in that room. Maybe use candlelight sometimes.....its SO romantic!! -Use thermos for your coffee or even soups. Make big batches so you dont have to use the kettle or what not every time. -Turn off all appliances you dont use. Then make sure they're ALL unpluged and I mean ALL of them. Stove, computers, dvd players, tv, vacuum, etc. -If you have hardwood floors, try to mop instead of vacuuming. -Showers instead of bath (said before)turn off the water while you're lathering. -You live in a mobile home, make sure its well insulated under your floors. Also make sure all pipes or wires coming in are well insulated at the point of entry. -Install weather strips around your doors. -Wash your dishes by hand but dont leave the water running while you do. Soap up all the dishes, then rinse it all out. -Try not to use your fans if it can be helped, they suck out the hot air. -Keep your curtains closed at night at least to keep as much cold out as possible....unless your windows are covered with the plastic, then no cold air at all will come through. I might have forgotten a few things but sure hope this can help you lower your electric bill.

If you are not already using them, get the low energy watt bulbs. They do work quite well to reduce the amount of electricity you are using and you will notice a difference the first month even by changing the lights in rooms you use most often. I do not know if you are using an electric based heat for the whole home or space heaters, but I will tell you this: I use an electric oil filled space heater in my room when it is really cold instead of using the furnace to heat the whole house at night, and this does not cost very much to run. Just don't crank it up to the highest setting, go no higher than medium and it will heat the room you are in and you will feel comfy and save a few bucks.

I have electric heat, too, and my heating bills in the winter are high. I am on the "budget" plan, which means that I pay the same amount winter and summer based on an estimate of my average usage, and twice a year the electric company checks my actual electric use, and gives me either a credit or a bill for having used more or less than the estimate.

I think everyone has the same Problems this winter Sweetie I am dreading mine I only use Table Lamps I also use the Energy saving Bulbs and I only have on what I need Wait and see how your Bills are in the Summer because I know that mine are always higher in the Winter

Have you tried the new energy saving light bulbs? The ones that look kinda like a spiral? I didn't care for them at first and can only use them in certain rooms because they start out dim then grow brighter and I can't have my daughter be around them in case of seizures,BUT they have saved me some money on my bill. Also making sure your computer gets turned off every night.

unplug things you aren't using until you use them. if you have dishwasher wash only full loads that goes for washer, too. use dryer only for socks, underwear, towels, hang up colored and wash and wear clothing on hangers to dry.

Energy efficient appliances? Window treatments? Heat down even more and buy more blankets? double pane windows?

Used flourescent bulb, dont used too much point or plug as this can increase the rent. Removed some of the plug/point if possible. We have done it and it is decreasing

If you are planning to living in the mobile home for some time, perhaps investing in solar pannels, and solar water heater is a good idea. Solar pannels are perfect for mobile homes, and they can save you big on electric bills, good pannels will work even during winter time, and solar water heater can do just the same in a cold day. The starting cost will be big, depending on your situation it might or might not be worth it, but is an option worth considering. In come cities the government will even pay you for the electricity generated through solar pannels, if is in your area it could be a good way to recover the cost quicker, and start having a profit in the near future.

Here are my top 20 tips. Hope they help! XX 1. Never leave appliances on standby, switch them off at the plug. 2. Tumble-dryers use a lot of electricity. Hang your clothes up to dry. 3. Buy low-energy lightbulbs. 4. Only put as much water as you need in a kettle. 5. Batch cook so you're not continually heating up the stove. 6. Always use the correct size saucepan. 7. Don't position your fridge or freezer in direct sunlight or next to your stove. 8. Defrost your fridge and freezer regularly. 9. Don't leave fridge and freezer doors open for longer than necessary. 10. Don't put hot food in the fridge or freezer. 11. Use a microwaver to reheat food and to cook small portions. 12. Turn down the temperature on your washing machine. Use economy settings. 13. Wait until your dishwasher is full before running it. Reduce the length of its wash cycle. 14. Compare utility companies and make sure yours is the cheapest. 15. Cut your heating by one degree. Wear more clothes if you need to. 16. Close your curtains in the evening to make sure heat doesn't escape. 17. Make sure your house is properly insulated. 18. Never leave any electrical appliance switched on for longer than necessary. 19. Draught-proof your house. 20. Have double or triple-glazing.

We do not heat the upstairs where our bedrooms are. We have heated mattress pads under our sheets. We have been warm all winter with just flannel sheets and a comforter over the bed warmer. It goes off automatically. That would be another place to turn the switch off, though. Right now Wal Mart has the bed warmers on sale. I got a queen size one for $45. I have gotten twin size for as little as $15. Ideally you would have the bed warmers, sleep cool, put in a programmable thermostat and have it come on about thirty minutes before you get out of bed. I see that you are going to turn the hot water heater down, and someone else suggested the hot water heater jacket. You can also get foam insulation tubes to go around the pipes and insulate them so you lose less heat. Just use the lights you need and try to get everyone in on the game of keeping the use lower. I know we could do a lot of these things too. Put extra curtains over your windows. Having a humid house can feel warmer, but you do not want to grow mold. Have you thought of ceiling fans to circulate the air? You turn them one way for winter and the opposite for summer.

Mobile homes always use so much more electricity for heating and cooling. When my daughter used to live in one her husband tried to add insulation under the home but it did not help very much. I could not afford to live anyplace which cost so much for heating and cooling.

Have you checked to see if you have a leak in your hot water tank (if it's electric)? That was one of the problems I had when my electric bill went over $350.00 a month. I had well water and the well constantly turning on and off was a big chunk of the bill, too. I half way dry clothes in the dryer on the perma press cycle and hang most everything on hangers to dry, the wrinkles come out most of the time and when it's time to put the clothes away, I already have them on hangers! (quickest & easiest are t shirts)

Do you have your heat set on 68, and do not turn it up and down. This will run the bill up more, than leaving it at one setting. Is you trailer under pinned and does it have insulation under it? If not this is something you need to do.

My relatives who live in a trailer put blankets up instead of curtains. Any doors we don't use, we put blankets on, too. See if you qualify for HUD and if they will put better windows or a new roof on. Our 1890 farmhouse used to cost us just as much as your place does. We put a new roof on and it cut our heating in half! In college, we used to put cloth across the top of the ceiling so the heat would stay down lower and not go up into the ceiling. So if you have a 10 foot ceiling or even 8 feet and you're all under 7 feet tall, you could cut down the need to heat so much in that room. If that room is the one with the thermostat, then that would be a big help. My cousin used to have a non-electric (except for heat) Monday. She and her son would eat by candle light, play an old-fashioned board game that they saw by using a kerocene lamp, not use a computer, tv, anything (they had a gas stove, too). She worked during the day and he went to school, so they turned everything down until they came home. Like 60 during the day and 68 at night. We would have to have non-electric Wednesday because we like Antique Roadshow. At any rate, that cuts the electricity by almost 1/7th. Mirrors reflect light and this is going to sound strange, but if you see some cheap mirrors at a sale (like a buck each and they're large), you can cut down on the amount of lights you have on by using mirrors. Strange, but true. My brother has an entire end of his living room with all mirrors. Marine (for use with boats)solar panels are supposed to be cheaper than regular solar panels. That is something you can look into. This is an interesting discussion. I hope you're able to cut the cost of your electric. What have you done to cut the cost so far? It will be interesting to see how much the ideas you get here help. I hope you're able to cut the cost by 1/2. Take care.

I hang my laundry to dry outside when the weather cooperates and inside when it doesn't. Then, to soften and fluff the laundry, I put them in the dryer for about 10 minutes. That saves a HUGE amount of energy and the clothes feel the same as if they were in the dryer for 60 or 70 minutes. Plus, in the bathroom, I have a nightlight that has an on/off switch. I turn it on at night and leave it on until morning. It's enough to see by if I have to use the bathroom at night so I'm not turning the main light on and off several times. That also saves a bundle!