I've lived with a lot of roommates that have their parents to pay for rent/bills, so they don't care about things like: turning off lights, using less water, etc. Here are some things I do without my roommates even knowing, that will save you money on bills and ultimately not change your roommates' daily lives.
-You can reduce the amount of water a toilet uses by adjusting a knob in the back of the toilet.
-If you have a light fixture with more than 2 lights, slightly unscrew one so it doesn't come on when that light is turned on. Also, bathroom vanity lights are usually very inefficient and usually not useful
-Turn the refrigerator and/or freezer temperature up a little. Often, the refrigerator will be set on a very low (cold) setting and your fridge will run (not literally) a lot, increasing your electric bill. The fridge/freezer can use a significant amount of electric. Keep it in check (but don't let food spoil! Trial and error).
-Turn the hot water tank down to a reasonable temperature (this can be dangerous! Turn off the breaker for the hot water tank first! Follow a guide!) This is probably one of the most beneficial things you can do to decrease your bills when living with roommates. If your Hot Water Tank is set on a high temp, people can take 40+ min showers with constant hot water. If it is set lower (not too low) they won't have as much hot water and it can cut their shower down to 20 min (reasonable time). There is usually a recommended Temp on the dial; I usually set mine 10-20° below recc temp. Some trial and error will get it perfect. Remember to turn the breaker back on once you've set the temp! The temperature will not automatically change. Be Careful not to set the temp too high, you can cause serious burns!
-If you have cable (which you probably don't, because...internet), the cable box uses a lot of electricity, even with it is turned off. Unplugging the box will save a lot of electricity, but it also takes some time to reboot once it's been unplugged. The amount you'll save is well-worth the 3 min boot time. Trust me.
-Your internet-router also uses a lot of electricity. While you're at class (when no one is at home for extended periods of time), unplug it! Routers usually take about 1min to reboot. If you have a light switch that controls an outlet, plug the router to that outlet and turn it off before you leave/on when you get home.
-When using AC/Heat, even a few degrees difference can be a major amount of money. At night, if your roommates want the AC/Heat at such a level that it runs constantly (too high or too low), you can wait until they're asleep and adjust it. Before they wake up, adjust it back. They won't know (unless it gets really cold/hot). This is major For an example, I took two winter months to do an experiment. It was consistently 0°F outside day and night. My roommate and I had lived in the apartment for 10+ months and had our routines down. One month, we set the heat to 72°F and the next month, we set it to 62°F (wore hoodies the entire month). The electric bills were $212 vs $78.....we decided that not wearing hoodies was not worth $134/month.
Hope this helps! Would love to hear everyone else's sneaky ways to help control bills!
Submitted August 22, 2016 at 07:15PM by ghpkhg http://ift.tt/2bwMZL4 LifeProTips
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