From using the microwave and charging your laptop to leaving the TV on overnight and using the dishwasher, the use of electricity is part of our every day lives, and we use it a lot more often and in a lot more ways than we even realize, especially at home. Unfortunately, our heavy use of electricity in our homes is often unnecessary and quite wasteful.

According to the US Energy Administration, the annual consumption of energy in a residential household in 2019 was 10,649 kilowatthours, which totals to 877 kWh per month. This number may not mean anything to you but just know that it’s a lot of energy consumption for one household.

The good news is that energy consumption of that magnitude doesn’t have to be the norm in your household. There are actually quite a few different ways you can reduce your energy consumption at home that is completely painless. It just simply involves making more of a conscious effort to reduce your electricity usage in some of your daily habits.

Take a look at some of the top ways to reduce your energy consumption at home.

Tips to Conserve Your Energy Usage at Home

Turn Off Lights and Electronics When You’re Not Using Them

How many times have you come home after a long day at work and realize you’ve left the TV and kitchen light on all day? It happens to the best of us and it’s common to forget these things from time to time (we’re all human). But making a conscious effort to reduce or eliminate this type of forgetful behavior will reduce your energy consumption drastically, which will, in turn, save you money on your monthly electric bill.

Switch From Traditional Light Bulbs  to LED Light Bulbs

First and foremost, LED light bulbs are a little more expensive than traditional light bulbs but, LED light bulbs are way more efficient, they don’t produce as much heat, and they have a much longer life than traditional lights. So will switching to LED lights cost more in the beginning? Yes, but it will cost you less over time, and you’ll be making a great impact on the environment as well.

Take Advantage of Natural Light

The more windows you have in your home, the better. One of the easiest ways to conserve energy at home is to make use of the natural light that enters your home whenever you have the chance. The simple act of opening your window or curtains and letting the sunlight in is not only a great source of light but also a great source of heat as well. By incorporating this into your daily habits, your energy consumption will be reduced.

Join a Shared Solar Initiative

In your attempt to reduce your energy consumption at home, sometimes you just have to go straight to the source of the issue, and that source is the actual resource of how your electricity is being generated.

In most cases, homes are typically powered from non-renewable resources like oil and coal, which is horrible for the environment. But now, there are initiatives out there that can help reduce your energy use simply by generating energy produced from natural renewable resources like the sun, water, and wind.

New York is a location that allows residents to utilize community solar. What is community solar in New York? Well, community solar in New York is where a solar energy farm generates electricity from the sun. That electricity is then transported to a New York electricity company, and residents can utilize the electricity generated from the sun instead of from non-renewable resources. This not only reduces your monthly electric bill but it also reduces your carbon footprint on the environment.

Get a Smart Thermostat

Aside from your lights, your heating and cooling system is the other major consumer of energy in your home. That’s not saying to not use your thermostat to save money on your electric bill but more so to get more control of your thermostat to ensure you’re using your HVAC system efficiently, and a smart thermostat is going to help you do just that.

The cool thing about smart thermostats is that they’re so smart that they learn your schedule to

automatically keep your home at an optimal temperature for when you’re home and when you’re not there or sleeping, thus allowing you to reduce your electric bill or at least keep it fairly consistent in monthly usage.