A MONEY-SAVING expert claims she was able to shave $75 off her energy bill with one simple switch.
Mom-of-two Becky, who goes by freebielady on social media, has tons of videos explaining all the ways people can save.
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She typically offers advice on how to coupon, deals of the month, and store must-haves.
Recently, she posted a TikTok claiming that one small change saved her major money.
She says she saved money by turning off her basement light – that’s it.
She noticed that the light was on 24 hours a day but by simply turning it off, she claims to have saved $75 on her bill.
Becky does not explain how the one light uses so much power, as the cost to run a light bulb is typically much lower.
A 60-watt incandescent bulb uses 0.06 kilowatt-hours of electricity per hour, according to electrical firm Mr. Electric. If you are charged $0.11 per kWh by your utility provider, this adds up to 0.66 cents per hour.
That means over course of a month, a single bulb left on for 24 hours a day would cost about $4.91 to run.
But flipping the switches in your home can lead to huge savings.
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The amount residents can save depends on the type of bulbs chosen as the savings come from the wattage.
According to the Department of Energy, lightbulbs have a set lifespan and it’s affected by how many times they are turned on and off.
If they are frequently switched on and off, this will lower their operating life.
Additionally, they recommend using sensors, timers, and other automatic lighting controls to help bring down costs.
To calculate how much you can save by turning a lightbulb off, you need to first determine how much energy the bulb consumes.
Every bulb has a watt rating printed on it.
For example, if the rating is 40 watts, and the bulb is on for one hour, it will consume 0.04 kWh, or if it is off for one hour, you will be saving 0.04 kWh.
Then you need to find out what you are paying for electricity per kWh, both in general and during peak periods.
Once you’ve done this, simply multiply the rate per kWh by the amount of electricity saved to get the dollar savings.
Rising energy costs
As inflation continues to soar, cutting costs is on the minds of most Americans.
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 1.3% in June with all items index increasing 9.1% before seasonal adjustment.
The summary showed that the energy index rose 41.6% over the last year – the largest 12-month increase since April 1980.
In just May alone, the energy index rose from 3.9% to 7.5%.
This energy expert reveals the exact temperature to set your thermostat at this summer to save up to 55% on your energy bill.
Plus, this savings expert has three home hacks to save you $100s on your energy bill every year.
