Serious about saving energy? There are many ways to do so, that include changing the way we accomplish our everyday activities, and pay for food and other goods. To really save energy requires you to focus on how you use energy at home, work and at the grocery store. There are the everyday common sense approaches and other ways to save that are not well known.  

1. Replace those regular light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, but only for lights that are used for extended periods of time. Compacts don't really provide the benefits if they are used only for short periods of time so save you money.
    
   
2. Turn off the lights and put your power hungry flat screen TV [2]and other electronic devices on an electricity diet. There's no use in using power to just keep the electronic clock going or to instantaneously have a picture. Attach the devices to a surge protect so you can turn everthing off during the day. 


3. Purchase paper towels, books, stationary and business cards that are made from recycled [3] materials. It costs less energy to make them
    
   
4. Put your computer on standby mode instead of using energy when you are not around.


5. Fill up the dishwasher entirely before you run it and use shorter wash cycles.


6. Clean the lint from the clothes dryer after each use so it dries the clothes more efficiently


7. Don't do the laundry, dishes, cooking or other energy intensive activities between 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm, which coincides with peak electricity and natural gas demand during the summer 
    
   
8. Consider using a fan during the summer and winter. Reverse the blade rotation to better circulate heated air that rises toward the ceiling. Do the exact opposite during the summer.
    
   
9. Enroll in a Demand Side Management (DSM) Program [4]with your electricity supplier and buy a programmable thermostat. Get paid to allow your electricity supplier to curtail electricity use during the high demand peak periods during the summer. This stabilizes the grid and keeps expensive power peaking plants off line.
    
   
10. Investigate grey water heat recovery systems like the GFX [5]. Since most of the heat from bathing, washing clothes and dishes goes down the drain, these systems recover some of it and send it back to the water tank. The end result is that you won't have to heat the water as much to attain the desired temperature


11. Purchase locally grown vegetables and fruits since it costs less to transport them to market. Also avoid buying fruits and veggies that are out of season. The cost to transport them over long distances is high and so is the energy used.
     
    
12. Consolidate trips to the store, mall and go as a group. This is like car pooling but you'll use less gasoline per trip and get everything accomplished in one trip.