There are a number of places you can turn to if you need utility assistance– help in paying your energy or electric bill. High-energy costs have forced many families to have to make the choice between paying their utility bills, their mortgage or rent, or even paying for groceries. They need utility assistance.

Most utility companies offer some form of utility assistance– financial assistance, grants, or weatherization type program. Also a number of government programs, both state and federal, can assist people with paying their utility bills. Find information and ways to obtain utility bill assistance in Mesa Arizona.

In addition, IV can also show you some ways to, and provide you assistance, in reducing the amount of your utility bills. For example, you can easily reduce your utility bill by up to 40%. There are many simple, free steps you can take to help save on your utility bills. The more tips you implement, the less need for utility assistance– utility bill help and assistance that you will need. See the energy saving tips below.

Find out how to save on heating and cooling costs
Cooling and heating typically are the largest part of household utility use and therefore provide a large opportunity to lower utility bills. As much as one half of the energy used in your home goes towards heating and cooling it.

1) Install a programmable thermostat to help save
They cost under $50 to $90 and programmable thermostats will automatically adjust your home’s temperature settings. You can save on heating costs by as much as 20 percent. How could this possibly be this effective?
It is easy. Say for example you go to bed at 10 p.m.. You can set up/program your furnace to automatically change from 70 degrees to 65 degrees at that time using a programmable thermostat.

Then say you wake up at 6:30 in the morning every day. You can program the system to increase the temperature again at 6 a.m., enough time to heat the home before you wake.  It is great for those cold winter mornings. Then the thermostat can go back down to 65 or even lower when you leave the house to go to work at say 8am.

And best of all, the system works exactly the same way for summer cooling savings. You just set it to raise the temperature while you and your family are sleeping or are away from home to cut AC costs and reduce utility bills.

A good programmable thermostat will cost between $50 and $90. That is all it will cost to save as much as 20%.

3) Lights
Replace incandescent bulbs with CFL light bulbs, which will use last at least 8 times longer and will use about 75 percent less electricity. Lighting does account for about 15% of your home’s electric use and provide a good opportunity to reduce utility bills.

CFL Bulbs will reduce your need for utility bill assistance.

Compact Fluorescent bulbs, better known as CFL bulbs, give off more light and use less electricity. This will reduce your need for help and assistance with your utility bills. These bulbs require less than 1/3 of the energy to produce the same amount of light as a regular incandescent light bulbs.

You can save about $30 or more in electricity and utility costs on your bills over each bulbs lifetime. These bulbs also produce about 75 percent less heat, so they are also safer to operate and will also help cut energy costs associated with home cooling. CFL bulbs will provide utility bill help by lowering your bills.

Some facts and figure on lighting and CFL bulbs.

• A single 20 or 25 watt energy-saving CFL bulb will provide as much light as a 100-watt ordinary bulb.
• Your lighting needs account for about 15% of your apartment or home’s electric use.
• CFLs last over 3,000 hours before dying, compared to only 1,000 hours for a standard bulb.
• Rather than leaving a light outside your home on all night, replace it with a motion sensor to save electricity and reduce your utility bill.
• Lighting controls or lighting “timers” can help save energy dollars and provide you assistance by lowering your utility bill. Timers can be set to turn lights off and on at specific times. Lighting dimmers can control the level of illumination and provide how much light you may want in a given situation.
• Just by keeping lights bulbs and light and fixtures clean, lighting efficiency can be vastly improved. As much as 20% of the light generated from a bulb can be lost to dust or other particles. Also take advantage of reflected light by keeping light fixtures close possible to light (e.g. white) colored walls or other surfaces as the reflection off the walls will help room be more well lit. These simple, easy, and free steps may reduce the number and wattage of bulbs you need and help you save on your utility bills, and reduce the need for assistance.

4) Use energy efficient appliances
Using energy efficient appliances will reduce your need for utility bill assistance.  You will reduce utility bills by up to  $400 a year. More on how energy efficient appliances save money.

Use Energy Efficient Appliances to Help Reduce your Utility Bills

Most homes spend on average of $1,900 on utility costs every year. If you change to some energy efficient appliances in your home that have earned the Energy Star rating, you can save up to $400 a year on your utility bill, cutting back on your need for any assistance.

Today, saving electricity and energy is on every persons mind, including the mind of the US Government. Reducing your energy usage will save you many dollars on your utility bills. Experts estimate that, in one recent year alone, businesses and consumers together saved several billions of dollars in energy costs.

In anyone’s home, their appliances are very large users of energy. If you are in the market to buy a new appliance, it is recommended that you choose a freezer, stove, or refrigerator that has the Energy Star seal. Energy Star is a program that checks appliances to ensure that they are energy efficient. If they are efficient, they then attain a seal of approval from Energy Star program. This program follows strict guidelines that have been established by the Environmental Protection Agency as well as the United States Department of Energy.

It is very simple to find an appliance that complies with the various Energy Star standards. Best of all, you don’t have to sign up for any utility bill help, register with the government, or even fill out any paperwork. Buying a new appliance will lessen your need for utility bill assistance, save electricity, and reduce your utility bills. It only requires that you purchase the appliance that you want, and of course to use it.

Products that are provided the Energy Star seal include freezers, stoves, refrigerators, light bulbs, light fixtures, air conditioning units, heating units, washing machines, computers, dishwashers, humidifiers, doors, dehumidifiers, windows, hot water heaters, and even entire houses.

Now that you know the seal to look for when you are choosing an appliance, you will wonder how much money using one of these products can truly save you on your utility bills. Experts estimate that an energy efficient home can save you 30 – 40 percent on your utility bill.

Using energy efficient items is only half of the solution to obtain assistance on your electric bill. You also need to practice saving energy, using the countless ways to save and tips on this site. You need to do this all the time, whenever and where ever it is possible in your home to save on your electricity

5) Save on water bills
WaterSense, which is a program that sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, makes it easy for Americans to save water. This assistance program is similar to the Energy Star program.

Water Bill Assistance From WaterSense

You need to look for the WaterSense label to buy water-efficient products. They can help you save water, and help you lower your water bills. A wide variety of products are available to buy, the list keeps growing, and they don’t require a change in your lifestyle. By making just a few simple changes to use water more efficiently, you could save about $175 every year on your water bill.

In order to be considered for the WaterSense label, products must:

• Be around 20 percent more water-efficient than the average products in that category
• Perform better than their less water efficient counterparts

WaterSense, which is a partnership assistance program sponsored by EPA, seeks to protect the future of our nation’s water supply by encouraging water efficiency products, savings on water utility bills, and also enhancing the market for water-efficient programs, products, and practices.

The WaterSense label on a product will indicate that these programs and products meet water efficiency and performance criteria. WaterSense labeled products will help you save money, perform well, and encourage innovation in manufacturing.

• Faucet : If every household throughout America installed a WaterSense faucet in their home, we could save more than 60 billion gallons of water annually. Incredible.
• Showerhead : Showering is approximately 17 percent of residential indoor water use in the United States. You can save a lot of money on your water bills by using a WaterSense showerhead. More than 1.2 trillion gallons of water are consumed each year from showers.
• Toilets : Older, inefficient toilets in homes are responsible for the majority of the water wasted in American homes, and for high water utility bills. Replacing these inefficient toilets with WaterSense labeled, efficient toilets could save nearly 2 billion gallons per day across the country.

6) Other
Find utility bill assistance by learning about other ways to lower utility bills.

Most utility companies offer free weatherization programs or consultations for homeowners and renters. What may happen is that a professional, highly trained employee or contractor from the utility company will visit the customers home or apartment. They will analyze the customers energy usage, and recommend energy conserving enhancements to their home. The customer will then need to apply for the program. Find a listing of weatherization programs by state.

If you are interested in finding a utility assistance program in Mesa Arizona check out these links.  You can help a friend or a loved one be comfortable and independent.  Tis the season to help others…it SHOULD always be that season.