As I drive around my neighborhood at night, enjoying the festive exhibits during the holidays, I often ask myself: “How much does it cost to have such an elaborate light display?”
Christmas decorations that light up my street are the first things that get me in the holiday spirit, along with 24 hour Christmas radio and hot cocoa, of course. I’ve noticed that despite the current state of the economy, people are still going all out for the season.
When it comes to energy-efficient appliances, I’m a very firm believer that spending a few extra dollars initially will save you money in the long run. This year, take a new approach to the holidays: Go green to save some green.
Lights
After researching the answer to my holiday light question, I discovered that it’s easy to spend a lot of money on lighting alone this holiday season, depending on the size of your display. The cost depends on what type of lights you are using.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, running LED holiday lights on one 6-foot tree for 12 hours per day for 40 days can save 90 percent or more energy when compared to traditional incandescent holiday lights:
| Type of Light | Electricity Cost * |
| Standard C-7 (125 bulbs, 4 watts each) |
$25.13 |
| Mini incandescent lights (300 bulbs, 0.4 watts each) |
$6.03 |
| LED holiday lights (280 bulbs, 0.04 watts each) |
$0.56 |
*Assumes an electricity price of 10.5 cents per kilowatt hour (Annual Energy Outlook 2008 Residential Average).
The Department of Energy estimates that if every household switched to using LED holiday lights, the country would save approximately $410 million in electricity costs.
Here’s where the “spend a little to save a lot” concept comes into play. LED lights are a bit pricier than incandescent lights, but the investment will pay off because of their long life and low energy costs. In addition, several rebates are being offered this year to promote the use of LED lights.
Ask your local retailer if they offer any rebates for LED light strings or search online to see if you can find a rebate for a specific brand. Even some utility companies are offering rebates to customers who purchase LED lights, so check with yours to ensure your saving money before and after you buy.
Heat
One of my all time favorite parts of winter is cozying up by a fire. This is partially because of the warm ambiance that a fire creates, but mostly because I’m always cold. A big cost during the nippier months is the heating bill. This holiday season, be smart about heating your home.
Make sure to pay attention to your thermostat. Turn it down when you‘re not going to be home. When you do want your home to be nice and toasty, factor in the extra heat sources (like the oven when you’re cooking all day or the extra warm bodies that are over for dinner) and manage the temperature accordingly.
Although the holidays come during some of the coldest months of the year, they bring some of the warmest memories. Those family parties and bountiful feasts bring a fuzzy feeling and physical warmth into your home.
Don’t want the hassle of doing this yourself? Invest in an automated, programmable thermostat. This handy gadget will automatically handle the climate of your house and could ultimately save you 10 percent a year on your heating bill.
Water
Do your holiday plans include house guests? If you do plan on having a full house that could also mean a number of extra showers, which ultimately results in a higher water bill.
A great way to minimize this expense is to install water-conserving showerheads. Changing over to a more efficient model will reduce your hot water usage by up to 60 percent. This is a change that will help save money all year round. So why not use the holiday overload as an excuse to start making a difference today?!
Fuel
Unless you finished all of your holiday shopping on Black Friday, there is still some hustle and bustle in your future. Plan ahead before you go to the store. This seems like a no-brainer, but I don’t just mean making a list and checking it twice. You should also try to combine as many of your shopping trips as possible. Map out your shopping trips so you hit the stores in an order that will save you travel time and gas.
Also, running all of your errands at the same time will save you some gas money. Every time you take a short trip from a cold start, your car is using twice as much fuel as a longer trip covering the same distance when the engine is warm, according to Fueleconomy.gov.
If your house is already “green” as can be, think about giving some eco-friendly gifts this holiday season. Check out Guffly for a wide variety of creative, green presents that are sure to spread holiday cheer while being environmentally savvy.
So make this holiday season about going green and saving money. You will enjoy the brightness of the holidays even more once you see those extra savings in your stocking!
For more money-saving tips and tools, check out Quizzle.com, where you’ll find out your potential for credit improvement and get the most affordable credit monitoring on the web.
Looking for more helpful holiday money saving tips? The QuizzleWire has got you covered:
- Celebrate This Holiday Season Without Spending a Fortune
- Is Your Car Ready For The Cold Season Ahead?
- 7 Ways to Protect Your Credit This Holiday
- 55 Money Saving Tips (Saving Money is a Great Thing All Year Round)
- How to Have an Eco-Friendly Holiday on a Budget
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/abbeychristine/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
LED lights do use less energy than incandescent bulbs, which saves money on energy use but they are not always cost effective.
I almost bought LED lights last year, but stopped to do the math. In the end, it simply wasn’t worth the extra money for the LED lights, since it would take years of use to make up for the price difference.
You can read all about my experience here, if you are so inclined:
http://simpledebtfreefinance.com/are-led-christmas-lights-really-more-cost-effective/
Great post but as Joe suggested, any energy saving investment needs to be carefully examined. Estimate how many Christmas lights you use and examine utility bills from previous years to come up with an accurate figure. I did a similar post, but left out LED christmas lights which could be a very source of saving energy. It can be found here: http://www.mymoneypower.com/blog/green-energy/20-ways-to-reduce-your-winter-energy-bill/ :)