The Secret to Saving Energy—and Money!

There are many ways to save money on your electricity bill, but one that is rarely considered is adjusting your energy consumption to coincide with off-peak energy rate hours. It is fairly easy to utilize these off-peak hours to maximize your energy savings, as well as quite lucrative.

Off-peak hours are a specific time of day during which you can receive a significant discount on electricity prices. These hours are determined based on when businesses and many homes use significantly less power and thus don’t provide such a strain on the power grid. This time varies, but it generally falls between the hours of 11PM and 7AM.

By adjusting your electricity consumption habits, you can utilize the reduced rates during these hours to save lots of money on your energy bills. I know what you’re probably thinking: that’s when I sleep! Well, don’t worry–you don’t have to be a night owl to take advantage of these savings.

One of the best ways to save energy by using off-peak hours is to run energy-hungry appliances. For example, you might run your washer, dryer, or dishwasher during these hours to maximize your savings. Your appliances may have an overnight or delayed-start setting that allows them to run during the night while you are sleeping. This can be particularly useful when using your dishwasher because, given that you are leaving your dishes overnight, you can forego the drying cycle and let your dishes drip-dry, which can save you even more energy.

Another way to save energy using off-peak hours is to charge all of your electrical devices, like phones, tablets, and laptops, during off-peak hours. This is also a good time to install any hefty computer updates that will require your computer to be on but unusable.

Lastly, one possible way to take advantage of these savings is to adjust to taking showers in the evening before you go to sleep. Showering or bathing just before you go to bed, as opposed to first thing in the morning, can save you a great deal on your energy bills because the energy required to use your water heater will be much cheaper during off-peak hours. While this isn’t for everyone, it can be quite useful for saving money.

For more information about off-peak rates in your area, contact your electric utility supplier.