The Stingy Scottish Miser: Thermal Curtains
So the Stingy Scottish Miser Chronicles continue. Yesterday my wife and I went shopping for thermal (also known as blackout) curtains. I'd read about them in comments on financial blogs but never saw...
View ArticleYes, thermal curtains work
At 93 degrees, it was the first big test of the year for the thermal curtains today. With the thermostat set at 77, the house is comfortable. Some parts of the house are never comfortable at that...
View ArticleI got an LED bulb, and it is fabulous.
I half-heartedly checked Home Depot's web site today, and saw they had 429-lumen, 8.6-watt (40W equivalent) LED bulbs at my local store. Finally! So when I had a chance, I drove over, plunked down my...
View ArticleSpending money to save money
Last month our budget billing for our electric bill reset, and I got a pleasant surprise. The monthly bill is $7 less than last year. That’s $84 a year, which isn’t huge, but it’s...
View ArticleDo thermal curtains work?
So the Stingy Scottish Miser Chronicles continue. Yesterday my wife and I went shopping for thermal (also known as blackout) curtains. I'd read about them in comments on financial blogs but never saw...
View ArticleYes, thermal curtains work
At 93 degrees, it was the first big test of the year for the thermal curtains today. With the thermostat set at 77, the house is comfortable. Some parts of the house are never comfortable at that...
View ArticleI got an LED bulb, and it is fabulous.
I half-heartedly checked Home Depot's web site today, and saw they had 429-lumen, 8.6-watt (40W equivalent) LED bulbs at my local store. Finally! So when I had a chance, I drove over, plunked down my...
View ArticleUsing child safety outlets to save energy
I got a new book recently about saving energy. I’ve read several of those, but this one had two tips I’ve never seen anywhere else: caulking baseboards and putting child safety covers on electrical...
View ArticleSpending money to save money
Last month our budget billing for our electric bill reset, and I got a pleasant surprise. The monthly bill is $7 less than last year. That’s $84 a year, which isn’t huge, but it’s...
View ArticleReview: The Lutron MS-OPS2 occupancy sensor switch
I installed a Lutron occupancy sensor switch this weekend. It detects you entering the room, turns the lights on, then turns them off five minutes after it detects nobody is in the room. The timeout...
View ArticleMy household’s energy usage dropped 19% in 2011
I got a letter from my utility company Saturday morning. Inside was a chart, comparing our household’s energy usage from 2010 and 2011. It dropped 19 percent. Considering our total bill for 2011 was...
View ArticleEnerlites HOSS: an occupancy sensor switch without ground
The Enerlites Top Greener HOSS is an occupancy sensor switch without ground wire requirements, and it’s pretty cheap too, at $12. A Lutron switch costs almost twice as much. But the HOSS does come with...
View ArticleWire a ceiling fan with light to one switch
People frequently wire a ceiling fan with a light to two light switches. That way they can control the fan with one switch and the light with the other. But what if the room has only one switch and you...
View ArticleAre LED light bulbs worth it?
I’ve been buying modern forms of light bulbs for almost 15 years now. So when someone asks me, “Are LED light bulbs worth it?” or “Do LED lights really save you money?” I can answer the question. I was...
View ArticleDo thermal curtains work?
So the Stingy Scottish Miser Chronicles continue. Yesterday my wife and I went shopping for thermal (also known as blackout) curtains. I'd read about them in comments on financial blogs but never saw...
View ArticleYes, thermal curtains work
At 93 degrees, it was the first big test of the year for the thermal curtains today. With the thermostat set at 77, the house is comfortable. Some parts of the house are never comfortable at that...
View ArticleI got an LED bulb, and it is fabulous.
I half-heartedly checked Home Depot's web site today, and saw they had 429-lumen, 8.6-watt (40W equivalent) LED bulbs at my local store. Finally! So when I had a chance, I drove over, plunked down my...
View ArticleUsing child safety outlets to save energy
I got a new book recently about saving energy. I’ve read several of those, but this one had two tips I’ve never seen anywhere else: caulking baseboards and putting child safety covers on electrical...
View ArticleSpending money to save money
Last month our budget billing for our electric bill reset, and I got a pleasant surprise. The monthly bill is $7 less than last year. That’s $84 a year, which isn’t huge, but it’s...
View ArticleReview: The Lutron MS-OPS2 occupancy sensor switch
I installed a Lutron occupancy sensor switch this weekend. It detects you entering the room, turns the lights on, then turns them off five minutes after it detects nobody is in the room. The timeout...
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