We all wish to conserve cash, here are 4 more easy projects you can do to save. The yearly cost savings starts to add up with every task you complete.

1. Vent your dryer throughout winter. At our home we have routed the clothes dryer heat vent towards the inside of the home throughout the winter months. We live in a really dry climate, so the additional moisture is really a benefit. You will find two main benefits of venting inside. First of all, you recover the heat that was used to dry the clothes which is roughly about 2 kWh every load. Secondly, you prevent bringing in cold outside air to make up for that air that the dryer is pushing outside. To vent to the inside, you have to have a dry climate, an electrical dryer only, along with a method to catch the lint within the dryer exit stream. The price of this task was $20.00 for some tubing along with a lint filter. Gas dryers by no means should ever be vented inside, simply because toxic combustion products are in the vented air. Electrical dryers should only be vented within if your climate is dry, because of moisture difficulties. Energy cost savings each year would be 630 kWh having a cost savings of $63.00 each year.

2. Use electric mattress pads. Unlike electric blankets, the energy consumption for mattress pad heaters is really low, about 0.15 kWh every night. By utilizing these electrical mattress pads to heat the bed, we are able to maintain the temperature in the rest of the home at a lower level and still be very comfortable. In our home we have two furnaces but since putting in the electric mattress pad heaters, we have been able to turn off the furnace that heats the bedrooms. The cost savings per year in propane is considerable. Others have reported being able to do the same thing with good quality down comforters or something comparable. The electric mattress pad heaters differ in cost, but ours was $125.00. The energy savings each year is 2.320 kWh along with a cost savings of $186.00 each year.

3. Insulate windows with bubble wrap. This really is a neat concept that comes from the greenhouse crowd. You are able to insulate windows by utilizing bubble wrap packing material and spraying a water mist on the window, after which applying bubble wrap. The bubble wrap will generally stay in place for a full season with only a one time spraying. The bubble wrap is unattractive to look at, but does permit great daylight to come in. It is really a great choice for windows you do not have to look out of. This is very cost efficient, payback is generally less than 1 heating season. At the end of the winter season, you are able to just pull the bubble wrap away, roll it up and conserve it for next year. If you are going to use a great deal of bubble wrap, it would be worth finding a dealer in packing materials to purchase it from, or a greenhouse supply location. You can get bubble wrap from shipping businesses but their costs are a lot greater. My cost was 27 cents per square foot for 141 square feet, for a total of $38.00. You are able to do this task in just a couple of hours. The energy cost savings was 955 kWh and the yearly cost savings was $75.00.

4. Get rid of phantom electrical loads. Many people are not aware of this, but energy is still used even when something is switched completely off! These phantom loads, as they are referred to, do not amount to alot, but they can add up and what a waste of electricity. The simplest method to figure out how much energy your appliances and gadgets consume even when they are powered down is with an inexpensive meter, called the Kill-A-Watt. You plug the Kill-A-Watt into the wall, then plug the device into it. The meter measures energy use and keeps a total of it. Other brands function similarly, Watts Up is another one you can use. In my house, all of the phantom loads added as much as 80 watts of energy all total. That’s 700 kWh each year. With energy strips, you are able to totally turn off every thing plugged into them by turning off the energy strip it self. We utilized energy strips to get rid of 20 of the 80 watts used in our home We found out that the remaining 60 watts was my dish HDTV receiver. Turning it off has no effect on its energy consumption whatsoever. The only cost involved in this task was a few energy strips, about $20.00 worth. I spent an additional $50.00 to upgrade my satellite receiver. It still consumes energy when it is turned off, but only about 15 watts verses 60 watts. The energy cost savings is 569 kWh each year with a cost savings of $57.00 each year.

For many more great free hot tips, money saving ideas and solutions click here now to visit Living Off The Grid

Have you ever counted how many electronic gadgets you have in your home? I believe on average a home would have at least 50 electrical devices.

Some appliances consume small amount of power such as personal computer, electric shaver, television etc while others such as refrigerator, water heater, toaster, hair dryer etc will burn through large amount of electricity.

If you were to add it all up, your monthly home electricity bill will be quite a large expense. It would be the second largest next to your bank home mortgage.

Due to rising energy cost, many home owners are opting to use renewable energy source such as solar power to help reduce their energy consumption. Hence, solar energy panels for homes have become one of the fastest growing industries in the country!

How do you convert your home to utilize free energy from the sun? The easiest and also the faster approach is to engage the service of a professional solar contractor.

The contractor will begin by prepping your home to receive solar energy. The technician will start by analyzing your home current energy consumption pattern. This is to calculate how much electricity is being used on a daily basis and when is the peak level. This will determine the size of the solar panels required and also the number of battery units needed.

How much would it cost to engage the service of a professional solar contractor? Unfortunately, the investment cost will be quite high. For a robust and complete residential solar power system, be prepared to invest upwards of $35,000. Be prepared also to expect the Return Of Invest (ROI) to take 30 to 40 years.

Because of that, many home owners have a tough time making the decision to use solar power for their house. Some will procrastinate or put off the decide for a while.

Is there is cheaper alternative? As a matter of fact, there is. If you can understand electrical wiring diagram and know how to configure electronic components by ready its manual, you can setup the system via a Do It Yourself (DIY) approach.

All of the components for a home solar system such as solar panels, charge controller, deep cycle batteries, power inverter, amp meter, volt meter, fuses etc are available from major hardware stores.

You can save some money by doing your shopping when there is a bargain or discount period. What you will need next is a good step by step instructional guide and a technical blueprint.

Looking for more ideas on how to use solar energy for homes? Learn how to build your own DIY solar system by downloading a free copy of “30 Solar And Wind Power For Homes Videos” e-book at http://www.diysolarenergy.info/

Since the beginning of time, generating energy in some form has been a key to our ability to adapt to our environments – a key to our very survival. And for centuries, as forward-thinking individuals at various times have begun to develop ways to generate energy for free, a select few others have done everything in their power to keep that from happening. Today is no different. The corporate energy overlords still take drastic measures to stifle the secret of how to make free electricity. Experts, estimate that by 2020 energy companies themselves will begin implementing perpetual motion technology to create cheap efficient eco-friendly power. I’m not holding my breath.

The secret to free energy is out once again and is accessible directly to you through earth4energy. You can build your own free energy generator for a fraction of the cost of the inefficient alternative energy systems that international energy corporations are pushing now. Earth4energy will show you how to make free electricity using inexpensive readily available materials to produce a small efficient free energy generator. The extent of its implementation will determine just how much money you can save on your energy costs. With only partial use, our customers have saved 30 – 50%. With full implementation, some have taken themselves off the grid entirely. And off the grid means no electric bill.

Hundreds of people worldwide have used Earth4Energy technology to successfully build their own energy generator. The start up costs are affordable to almost anyone – less than $200 for a lifetime of free electricity. The 50-page detailed instructions on how to make free electricity are easy to follow, even if you don’t consider yourself a particularly “handy” person. In addition to that, we provide full technical support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you have any problems a member of our friendly tech support team will quickly help you resolve whatever challenge you may be facing.

What’s more, we don’t mind if you share this technology with everyone you know. The more people who learn how to build a free energy generator, the sooner we can make a real positive and meaningful impact on our environment.

The advantages of the earth4energy generator are convincing to say the least. You will be hard pressed to find anything that comes close. When you learn how Earth4Energy can be used to make free electricity, you’ll experience these amazing benefits:

• Generation of unlimited electricity – Not only does the earth4energy generate enough energy to power your entire home, it generates the energy needed to power itself.
  
• Eco-Friendly – This zero point magnetic generator requires no external fuel source.
  
• Safe to use – Because the earth4energy uses no flammable liquids and emits no noxious exhaust or fumes, it is safe to use indoors around children and pets.
  
• Conserves space – Unlike bulky gas and diesel generators or wind turbines and solar panels, the earth4energy requires very little space.
  
• Guaranteed – If within 60 days you can’t see how you’ll benefit from earth4energy, simply return it for a full refund, no questions asked.

The search for inexpensive and efficient alternative energy is like the quest for a cancer cure. Both have been around for a long time, but have been suppressed by the power moguls and cartels that dictate to the very governments that supposedly regulate them.
http://www.freeenergydays.com

You don’t even have to find a completely solar heating system to find benefits from solar water systems, there are hybrid systems available too that will reduce utility heating by up to twenty-five percent. There are generally two types of systems used in residences for solar water systems, active and passive.

With active systems, which may also be called compact systems, use a pump to circulate the fluid and get heat distributed throughout when the temperature reaches a set amount. These generally perform better than passive systems, but are more complicated to install and maintain. These are more expensive systems, and the pump does rely on conventional electricity to work.

Passive systems have a water container and a solar energy collector mounted on the same chassis. These rely on heat pipes to transfer heater from one container to the next. There are different types of passive solar water systems but they are suited to different climates. If you are going to invest in one of these, ensure that you account for the worst type of weather in your home area, and purchase or set up a design that can accommodate this. For example, open loop passive systems which are made of metal are not at all designed for cooler climates. In chilly weather the pipes might freeze and damage the panels. There are closed loop passive systems that work to counter this problem, but in colder climates you want to choose panels with vacuum tube collectors to maximize your heat retention.

There are a lot of different plans available, and also small do it yourself kits available to construct and install and start your own solar water system. These kits reduce implementation costs by the amount of installation, which can significantly reduce your original investment. Always ensure that you are purchasing from a reliable source, and if you have questions about the installation, ask before going ahead. There are some things you might be able to manage without instructions, but a solar water system isn’t one of them, if you are not particularly handy, this can cause costly damage to your home, and even costlier repairs to your water heating system, so exercise caution. This type of installation requires some plumbing knowledge, and possibly additional setup on the roof of your home.

Projections show that a solar water system will pay for itself within ten years. Less if you do it yourself or buy an easy to install kit. In these times people are looking for energy renewable solutions, so the market value of your home increases as you install more energy efficient devices.

You have probably heard a lot in the media about the increasing popularity of solar panels being retro-fitted to houses and new houses being designed and built with solar technology in mind. There are a lot of reasons people are turning to solar power, both for environmental reasons and economic ones. Why do people use solar power? There are a lot of great reasons.

One of the main reasons solar power is becoming so popular is that it is environmentally friendly. Generating electricity from home solar power systems does not emit pollutants like carbon dioxide. Increasing reliance on solar power means less reliance on fossil fuels as a nation, and less reliance on traditional electrical utilities for individuals.

A second great reason to use solar power is to provide your home with electricity that will drastically lower your bill from your local electrical utility company. In fact some people are able to eliminate their electric bill altogether, at least some of the time. Many people who fit their house with solar panels use financing to pay for it. But they are investing in their home rather than the local electric company.

While the solar loan payment is fixed, utility rates continue to increase. In fact, many people who finance solar home power systems have a net positive gain right from the beginning. In other words, their electricity bill goes down by more than the cost of the monthly payment for the solar power system. Some people save up to 80% on their monthly electricity bill. Additionally, in the U.S. there are tax credits for installing solar panels, and some states have their own tax rebates on top of it. Solar power systems pay for themselves within a few years.

Perhaps solar’s biggest advantage is one that is not talked about as much. Solar panels are more efficient than power from other sources. It comes from your roof and goes right into your house rather than from a coal-fired power plant or hydroelectric plant through an electrical grid. Energy made during the day can be stored for use during the night, so you will have no lifestyle changes due to fluctuating home power levels.

When new neighborhoods are planned using solar powered homes, each house has its own “power plant” right on the roof, so there is no need to overbuild the electrical grid in anticipation of the building of a lot of houses. Solar panels can be placed wherever they will receive the most sun, and once they are up, they require little to no maintenance and have a 40 year lifespan. Most have a 25 year warranty as well.

People who learn about the great advantages of solar power and make the decision to convert their house to run on solar energy have several ways of doing this. There are so-called turnkey systems where contractors come in and take care of everything. Installation takes on average two days and only rarely requires access to inside your home.

Some who choose to go solar purchase solar panels and then either install them or hire contractors to do so. There are even people who make their own solar panels and install them, and this is the most cost efficient (and labor intensive) way to go about it. There are ways to convert your house to run on solar power where you can be involved in the process as little or as much as you want to be.

Today’s thin film solar panels are bringing the cost of going solar into a more reasonable territory for most people. With factories in Europe having ramped up production to meet incentive programs there, thin film solar panels are more readily available than ever as well as being more cost-effective than ever. They can be easily incorporated into plans for new houses. Thin film solar panels have been featured on national news stories, and Time magazine even declared them “Invention of the Year.”

With every year that goes by, the reasons for using solar power increase which makes the reasons for sticking with conventional electricity generation decrease. With federal and sometimes state-level tax credits and other incentives, there is more reason than ever before to start using solar generated power.

There are many ways residential solar panels can help you get away from relying on municipal power. One of the main reasons why people are turning to solar energy is that electric companies are so high in their prices, that many are getting fed up with paying someone else in order to power their homes. With the relatively low initial cost to set up a solar grid these days, it is no wonder more people are getting away from their reliance on power companies.

Now days, residential solar panels are so cheap it isn’t funny. They can either be bought already manufactured, or there are DIY kits available to put your own together. There are even programs available to get panels for free, from many different places. It doesn’t take but a simple internet search to locate many sites that offer kits and complete plans for making you own. One of the first ways to really get started is to educate yourself on solar energy, how it works, what kinds of skills are involved, and what materials you will need.

You can find residential solar panels for free if you look hard enough. This will save you a lot on initial costs, but it does take time. Not only are there government rebates and other incentives to lower your costs, but some companies that use and replace solar panels on a regular basis actually try to donate their used panels to private citizens, rather that spending money disposing of them.

One of the places you can try to find free panels is from some construction companies that work on our national highways. How many times have you driven by a construction site, seen solar grids that power caution lights, or for other applications and wondered what happens when one gets damaged?

Because these can become a safety hazard, companies have to replace them on a regular basis. A person who needs residential solar panels can simply contact these companies, and just ask for them. In many cases, even though they may be damaged, all that needs to be done is to replace a few solar cells, and the panel is complete again. Anyone with a little knowledge and skills can replace these cells with new ones, and the cost of replacement is minimal.

Having residential solar panels added to your power grid reduces and in some cases eliminates your reliance on power companies. You can even sell your surplus energy back to the power company, and they have to buy it from you. But just installing solar panel systems in your house isn’t enough, you also have to change you energy usage habits.

Replacing old energy sucking appliances and changing out your old incandescent bulbs for compact fluorescent bulbs are both good ways to start. Turning off unnecessary lights and unplugging television sets when not in use also helps cut down on your energy usage as well.

You can find a wealth of information about residential solar panels online. There are many government sites that you can visit for details on how to sign up for free panels, and many DIY sites. Not all DIY websites are the same, look carefully at any one that interests you. Make sure that the are offering a complete package, not just some vague reference information that you can find on your own for free.

Finding wind turbine instructions to build a wind generator of your own is not that difficult. It is important to get started with wind turbine blade design, finding a tower and finding all of the parts you need first.

What will you need to get started?

· Detailed wind turbine instructions to build your own

· Regular tools found in nearly every workshop

· About 5 days of work to complete it

· Under $150 to build a 1000w wind generator including the plans

That’s right; it only costs about $150 to build a wind generator that produces 1000 watts of power for your home. Why on earth does it cost over $3000 for a new commercially manufactured one then?

We just couldn’t believe the prices when we got started looking for one a few years ago. We decided instead to build our own with wind turbine instructions we found.

It really wasn’t that hard either- all of the parts were easy to find and the building process was not complicated either.

It really compliments our solar panel array, and our bio diesel set up for our backup generator too, remember that diversification is very important for your renewable energy run home.

We built our first one in about 2 weekends (now we have 3 built).

I would suggest that you order the DC motor necessary to generate power for your home after you get started, do this first. It takes a few days to have it delivered to your home from the sources listed.

While you are waiting you can make the wind turbine blades and find a suitable tower.

A small one is best built out of PVC blades but you will be limited to about 6 foot blade diameters (3 foot individual blades). This size will only produce about 500 watts but it is a good place to start.

If you try and use PVC for bigger blades they tend to break under high wind forces as we found out this past year when one of our PVC blades broke.

Our two larger machines are made with wooden blades. You can use cedar, spruce or hard woods for blades bigger than 8 foot diameter (which is the minimum to produce 1000 watts). The wind turbine instructions to build one show you how to make simple blades for your machine.

You can use old TV towers for your own tower to get your wind turbine up there. Take your time assembling all of the parts according to the instructions so that your wind machine works properly.

Isn’t it time you got started producing your own free electricity for your home? Aren’t you tired of $200 electric bills? I know we sure were before we moved off the grid and started using renewable energy.

Wind Turbines Instructions To Build one of your own should be followed closely to achieve the best results; we are sure you can follow the wind turbine instructions and have your own spinning away at your home.

When we moved off the grid and started using only renewable energy to run our home we had no idea what to expect. When we found wind turbines Instructions to build one we knew we could produce our own home power more effectively, along with our solar panels and bio diesel backup generator.

The one thing every household must have to generate light is electricity, clearly – unless, of course, you’re the type of person who is more embracing of the simplistic, natural-lighting ways of living. But, assuming you’re thinking differently and acting modernly unlike the Amish and primordial people of old, there’s no doubt you use light bulbs, and have been for years.

What’s needed and proves quite necessary to channel the charge of electricity -and, in the process, cease walking into walls- once nighttime hits are those tiny things called light bulbs, and a good number of them, too. As devices solely designed to produce artificial light from electricity, light bulbs are humans’ current means to do, live and function once the sun dips under on the horizon. Without light bulbs and their electrical transmitting abilities, we would be in a much more darkened and simplistic living position. But, we’re not. We’ve let the light in and have been doing so ever since Thomas Alva Edison provided the first incandescent light bulb.

Progressing Forward, Far From Incandescent Ways of Old

Now, thanks to human inventiveness and scientific advancement there are many different types of light bulbs to choose from. Beyond the incandescent options originally made and provided, people can now choose from halogen, fluorescent, compact fluorescent (CFL), high-intensity discharge, low-pressure sodium and many other types of bulbs and/or lamps. Many people these days, though, typically opt for light bulb options they’re familiar with and have used in their childhood and current households. The most common type of light bulb used, and still holding strong today, are the original incandescents.

But, gaining much more popularity, as of late, are CFL light bulbs or Compact Fluorescent light bulbs. Why, you ask? The reasons are primarily linked to the current conservation and energy issues that are so significant in our day and age.

An Eco-Friendly and Energy-Saving Lighting Craze

That epiphanic cartoon style light bulb has been popping above peoples heads all over the place – an energy-saving notion has been spreading wildly. And whether these individuals are already eco-friendly or are looking to ease their way into a green way of living, they figure the first corrective step would be best initiated in how they use electrical energy.

And it is truly a wise decision, especially when looking to be actively green. The numbers are there to support such a choice too. As it stands, CFL light bulbs are acclaimed for their considerable energy saving abilities.

Using Less Electrical Power & Saving The Atmosphere

CFL light bulbs are about 4 times more efficient than incandescents. Also, in terms of life-spans, incandescents have nothing on CFL light bulbs as CFLs last up to 10 times longer. This means using 1/3 less electricity on average simply through using CFL light bulbs. And in terms of released CO2 emissions, by utilizing the CFL bulbs (and this is just in the case of one CFL bulb) nearly a half ton of CO2 is kept out of the atmosphere. So, figure that if you replace all the incandescent bulbs in your home with CFL light bulbs – and let’s just say you replace 10 incandescents in total – that means you’re actively stopping 5 tons of CO2 emissions from being released into the atmosphere, and subsequently, weakening it.

Leave the incandescent days of old behind and join the energy-saving craze. With CFL light bulbs you’ll be modernized, saving energy and lending a green helping hand.

After seeing the price of a new 1000w wind generator we decided to learn how to make a wind generator. It just made sense. The home wind turbine we looked at cost in excess of $3000 and we just couldn’t afford that much. But we did need to upgrade our power production for our newly built off the grid home.

After building our own house we didn’t have very much money left over. We did buy a solar panel array, but it turned out that our investment just wasn’t enough to power our home.

What options did we have?

· Learn how to make solar panels

· Find free solar panels (we had heard they were out there)

· Learn how to make a wind generator

We opted for the last option because the project looked like it had the potential to produce the most power for our home and also cost the least. That decision proved to be a good one as the plans we got showed us where to find free or very inexpensive material to build it with.

We found the PVC pipe for the blades from a friend who works in construction. They use it for sewer pipe.

The wind turbine blade design was not that difficult to figure out either. The individual blades are cut from a pattern and sort of on an angle. In this way they catch the wind more efficiently so the home wind power machine produces the most power for your home.

Learning how to make a wind generator was not that difficult, even finding the DC motor used as a turbine. It’s available online and only cost us $35 including the shipping costs.

When you build your own wind turbine you won’t have any trouble finding the special parts. Most of them are available free or at your local hardware store. We even found a source of free wind generator towers. People everywhere are getting satellite TV and are discarding their old TV towers. The 40 foot towers work great for most applications.

How long did it take to build?
We spent about 4 days in total working on the project until it was producing power for our off grid home.

How much did we spend?
In total it cost us $89 to build a 1000w wind generator and that includes the cost of the plans.

With all of these benefits, isn’t it time you built your own?

Just follow the link for more information.

How To Make A Wind Generator is really the fastest way to start living off the grid or just start saving money by producing Renewable Energy for your home.

Our family has been living off the grid since last year, and loving every minute of it. Learning how to make a wind generator definitely was what we needed to do since it produced the most renewable energy with the least amount of cost involved.

1. Because the foundation, roof and exterior walls are already built, you will not incur these costs.

2. You will be able to remodel the area with little disruption to the rest of your home.

3. You may already have the electrical wiring in place (most garages have lights and at least one electrical outlet) as well as plumbing.

4. Depending upon local building codes, you may not need a building permit for your project.

Why would you need a building permit? This can vary from one location to another, but the primary issues are:

* Structural soundness

* Exits

* Heating and cooling

* Windows

* Ventilation

* Insulation

* Plumbing

* Electrical

In some areas, failure to build to local code can require that you restore the space to its original condition before you sell the house.

The best place to start remodeling a garage to a room is to determine what you have to work with in terms of floor, walls, access, etc. You will likely have a cement slab floor and an adequate roof. If there are no windows, you will need to decide whether to install them, how many to install, and where you will place them. If your garage has finished walls you will need to determine whether the walls are insulated. If they are not insulated, you will need to make decisions about how you will insulate. You will need to plan for heating and cooling and adequate lighting and electrical outlets. Do you need plumbing in the room? If so, you will need to determine whether there is or is not plumbing in the area and what changes are required.

Your next decision will be whether to use the entire garage for your new room or only part of it. If you have a two-car garage, you might decide to finish only half of it into living space. In this case, you might want to pay extra attention to soundproofing.

Converted garages can serve a variety of functions. Garages can be converted into everything from a kitchen to a living room or a family room, den, home theater, home office or an extra bedroom. You might discover enough “attic” space to finish two rooms (one above the other) or to open the ceiling and design your new room with a vaulted ceiling.

The next decisions will determine the appearance of the finished room.

1. What kind of flooring will you use? You will find that a slab is conducive to almost any kind of flooring you choose to install. Be sure to seal the slab before you begin installation of any flooring materials. And, if you install carpet, you might want to invest in double padding to make the room more comfortable. You can also build a traditional joist floor over the garage slab to match the floor level in the rest of your home.

2. What kind of ceiling do you want? Depending upon the planned use of the space, you might choose a vaulted, exposed beam ceiling, a pitched ceiling, a tray ceiling, a drywall ceiling, or a drop ceiling.

3. Finally, you will need to decide on the walls. You can choose paneling or sheetrock, or you might want to consider constructing the walls of insulated board. If the room will be used as a playroom or a home office, this might be just the solution you need.

Finally, you will need to decide whether to do the work yourself or hire a contractor. You might decide to hire a contractor for some of the work, like electrical, plumbing, etc. and do the rest yourself. Either way, you’ll find that the cost of converting your garage to living space is far less than adding a room to your home.

To get a quick estimate of the cost for this project check out www.remodelestimates.com, and to help you organize your project invest in an organizer like the one at www.remodelingorganizer.com.

A garage conversion is a great remodeling project. It’s the perfect way to get the space you need at the lowest possible cost. Enjoy!

Dan Fritschen, the author of this article, is the founder of the websites http://www.remodelormove.com http://www.remodelestimates.com and http://www.remodelingorganizer.com He is the author of three books on home remodeling.