Cutting Back your Utilities - Continued

Insulate your attic.

Be sure your attic and any floors over unheated spaces are insulated.  Use insulated window treatments.  These insulated drapes are not ugly like they used to be.  This will keep it cool in the summer and warm in the winter.  Put on a sweater when the weather outside is cold.  Add layers of clothing instead of turning up the heat.  This will save you both electric and fuel if that is what you use.

Same goes for the air conditioning in the summer.  Save a lot of money by using the air less.  Fans work well in the summer to cool off a room.  Be sure and have your heating and air conditioning inspected every year. A small investment in this will pay for itself many times over when those electric and fuel bills come rolling in. 

Make your long distance phone calls at night

The cheapest times to call long distance are typically between the hours of eleven p.m. and eight a.m., all day Saturday and from five to eleven p.m. on Sundays.  Take the time to look up a number in the phonebook instead of paying to talk to directory assistance.  Do not make credit card telephone calls. 

Pay your utility bills in person. 

Many utilities allow you to pay your bill at a local store or some other convenient location. You will save the price of stamps, the savings are modest, but save those stamps for your letters to your friends instead of those long expensive telephone calls.