How to Save Your Money on Indoor and Outdoor Lighting Costs

Energy saving lighting can take up a good portion of your electricity bill each month. It is a good start to switch to energy-efficient lighting in order to keep that expense at low level. Not only will this help each month, but we also have a few more lighting tips to share that will help you save even more.

The best energy-efficient light bulb to get would be LED bulbs. This type of light bulb’s price will be a little bit higher than traditional bulbs, but in the long run it will help save your money because they use less energy than traditional ones. Energy-saving LED bulbs use only about 20%-25% of the energy and last up to 25 times longer than the traditional light bulb! They use even less energy than CFL bulbs. Just by changing your light bulbs in your home can help you save money on your energy bills monthly.

According to Energy.gov, just by replacing five of the most used light fixtures or bulbs with Energy Star rated bulbs, you can save up to $75 on electricity bill per year! Another thing you should consider when looking for ways to save money and energy is getting lights with controls or adding controls onto your lights. You can buy the lamps with 3-way capability, motion detectors, or solar lighting and by adding timers or dimmers to your lights can help save on energy costs. Dimmers can help save energy on dimmable light bulbs. It's the same for 3-way lights - they only use the amount of light that you need, yet allow the option of brighter light when it is needed. Timers are great for your home. You can set them to turn the lights off when they are not needed.

If you prefer lights that stay on consistently outside, try a dusk to dawn light. They come on at dusk and are off at dawn. This is great so you don't accidentally leave the outside lights on all day. Some dusk to dawn lights even have timers or motion sensor detectors to help you save on electricity bill even more. Another great outdoor light that is energy efficient are solar lights to line your walkways. Solar lights charge all day by the sun, and light up when the sun goes down. If you still want to have lights along your walkway, but do not want solar lights, aim for low-voltage lighting. These lights will light your walkway with less power, saving you money!

All of these ways are great to help you save money monthly. Another thing to remember, and probably the easiest solution, is turning your lights off. A good rule of thumb to remember is when you leave a room, turn off the light!