With holiday decorations filling the streets and stores, National Grid offers some helpful hints to save on money while still making your Christmas bright.
“National Grid customers don’t have to be Scrooges to save money on lighting and festivities this holiday season,” a National Grid press release said. “By following some simple energy efficiency and safety tips, customers can benefit from a more environmentally friendly, safe and cost-effective season.”
Those of you who still may have the classic, traditional lights may want to think of investing in light-emitting diode lights, more commonly referred to as LED lights. These lights not only are better for the environment, but they will really save your wallet. To operate 10 sets of 100 LED lights will only cost the average customer about 60 cents per month, but to operate 10 strings of 25 traditional bulbs will cost about $37.50. By switching over to LED lights you could be saving over $36!
For all those indoor holiday lights and decorations, turning them off before bed, or while you are out of the house shopping, can also cut down on your electric bill. Why have the lights on if there is no one around to enjoy them?
In the days leading up to Christmas there are other ways to save money that don’t involve decorating.
Many people are baking cookies or cooking what they can before the 25th arrives so that they can spend as much time with their families as possible. While doing all these preparations for the big day, don’t use a bigger pan than you need. Cooking in a smaller pan with the lid on can save a lot of energy.
“For example, cooking pasta without a lid on the pot can use three times as much energy,” National Grid said.
And with all the fantastic food that you will be whipping up, National Grid has a great idea to keep that holiday bill going lower and lower while keeping your food cold.
“Keep extra beverages and holiday leftovers cold by storing them in your garage or on the porch if temperatures permit,” National Grid said. “Unplugging that second refrigerator saves $23 per month on the electricity bill. Also, defrosting frozen food in the refrigerator helps keep the refrigerator cold.”
By using these and the other safety tips printed in last week’s issue, you can lessen your holiday bill between 5-20 percent.
“You’re not going to completely lower your bill … but you’re going to soften the impact,” said Steven Brady, a National Grid spokesman. “We can’t actually lower anybody’s usage for them, but if we can provide them the necessary information it helps our customers make better decisions when they’re using energy and hopefully leads to lower or more manageable bills for them.”
Now, with all these energy-saving tips, National Grid also offers some safety tips that could help keep you and your family safe.
Plugging outdoor lights into Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCIs) will automatically shut off the electricity if an electrical fault with the lights occurs, preventing any electrical shock. GFCIs can be purchased at hardware and electrical supply stores, National Grid said.
Also, you can further keep your home safe by covering outdoor plugs and connector joints with a water-resistant layer of plastic wrap and electrical tape.
And be sure not to overload your electrical circuits this holiday season by checking your fuse or breaker panel to see how much your home can handle.
“Electricity is a wonderful product, but it can also be very dangerous if used improperly” Brady said. “We just like to periodically remind customers of safe and appropriate practices and uses of electrical appliances.”
In keeping with society’s movement to be “green,” National Grid is also issuing an efficiency challenge to its customers: “pledge to use three percent less energy every year for the next ten years.”
Those who would like to take part in this can visit www.powerofaction.com to pledge, participate in a free energy evaluation and learn different ways to reduce your carbon footprint.
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