Unfortunately, life happens and families can go through a period of time when both parents don’t have a regular source of income. This was the case for Mr. Map and me a few years ago.
Oh that summer day is still fresh in my mind. Mr. Map broke the news that he was laid off (aka fired) and I was only working during tax season at the time. Unfortunately, tax season ended a couple of months earlier. The emotional toll is best left for another day, but suffice it to say that no one was having a blast.
Since I’m diligent about our personal finances, we had an emergency fund to carry us through this challenging period. Even though I had money set aside and we had no debt, I still looked for ways to lower our expenses and bring in extra money.
I combed through our monthly bills and found that our energy bill was high. So I rang our gas and electric provider for tips to lower our energy costs. They went through the normal energy saving scheme – run the washer on the weekends, turn off lights, yadda, yadda.
Then the customer service representative shared an easy program that offers credits for agreeing to have air conditioning turned off during periods of peak energy use. The credit wasn’t huge – still isn’t, but I decided it was an easy way to save money. And if there continues to be no blackouts, the savings will grow over time. So, I signed us up for the program.
I can happily report that our air conditioning has never been turned off – even with the current heat wave. Furthermore, we continue to receive a credit on our energy bill for doing nothing.
If you’re looking for a way to save money, check with your electric provider for participating in energy saving programs to earn credits to lower your electric bill.
Energy Saving Programs to Earn Credits on Your Bill
Here are a few energy saving programs that I found with a quick google search:
Wisconsin Public Service
Program: Cool Credits Direct Load Control Program
Benefit: 1) Central Air Conditioner – Load Shed and Cycling (Best Choice) $8 credit in months of June, July, August and September, for a total annual credit of $32, and 2) Electric Water Heater – Load Shed $2 credit each month for 12 months, a total annual credit of $24.
Link: WPS Cool Direct Energy Program
We Energies
Program: Energy Partners
Benefit: Up to $50 annual credit for cycling your air conditioner during high demand periods
using a switch installed near your central air
conditioner compressor.
Link: We Energies Energy Partners
Con Edison
Program: Central Air Conditioning Program
Benefit: Receive free Carrier programmable thermostat (valued at $300) and installed for free, receive $25 after the thermostat is installed, and get an additional $25 at the end of the season.
Link: Con Edison Central Air Program
Pepco
Program: Energy Wise Rewards
Benefit: Save up to $160 annually off your cooling and heating costs.
Link: Pepco Energy Wise Rewards
Readers: If you have a money saving story to share, leave a comment or shoot me an email. In the next couple of weeks, I’ll post a list of Money Saving Tip from Readers.
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