Budget Cuts: Money-Saving Tips for Home or Office

Whether you work for yourself or someone else, or you just want to find ways to save money around your own home, there are many ways you can improve your economic circumstances. To help you out, here are eight actions you can take at your home or office to help you slash expenses:

Buy Fluorescent Light Bulbs

Not only do fluorescent bulbs use less energy, they emit less heat and last longer than those old incandescent bulbs. While they are generally a bit more expensive to purchase - buy them in packs to help defray the cost - they ultimately will cost less in the long run. And if you don't feel you can immediately rush out and substitute all the incandescent bulbs in your home or office for fluorescent, have some on hand and exchange them when the old bulbs burn out.

Weather Strip Doors and Windows

When it comes to energy savings, doors and windows are areas of concern. Using weather stripping between moving parts, installing a new door threshold or sweep, and installing a window-insulator kit are all ways you can block the draft and cut down on costs. Plus, you may be eligible for a tax deduction. Check out the Alliance to Save Energy.

Recycle Paper

Whether you're at home or in the office, if you ever print out hard copies that you ultimately have no use for, recycle the paper. If it contains confidential information, invest in a shredder before placing it in the recycle bin. If it has only been printed on one side, cut the pages into smaller pieces and use the scraps for jotting down notes or writing the weekly grocery list.

Turn Your Equipment Off

While it's okay to use "sleep" features on office equipment that powers down when it is not in use, you should actually turn it off during long periods of nonuse in order to cut energy costs and improve longevity. So if you don't already turn you computer off at night, start now.

Replace Your Inkjet with a Laser

Printer ink and toner cartridges can get expensive, so if you do a lot of report-printing it's wise to have a laser printer. The difference in price per page can run from as low as $.01 to $.02 for laser printing versus as much as $.15 for inkjets. You might still want to have an inkjet printer on hand for the occasional color job, but if you mostly print documents, laser is a less-expensive option.

Eliminate Outside Services

For the small employer who has an outside service clean their bathrooms and empty their trashcans, consider if there is someone in-house who can handle these tasks. For those at home who pay someone to mow their lawn, wash their car or perform other tasks that they can do themselves, think twice before farming the work out to someone else.

Use the Sunshine to Warm Rooms

Whether you are at home or in your office, if you have windows, take full advantage of them by allowing the sun to shine in during winter months and heat the room. Be sure to close the blinds or drapes when it gets dark to retain the heat. And, in the summer, you can reduce your cooling costs by keeping your shades or blinds closed during the heat of the day, especially if you are out of the house at work.

Use a Programmable Thermostat

The benefit of a programmable thermostat is that you can set it and then not worry about it again. It will moderate the temperature of your home based on the pre-set temperatures that you have selected. This means you don't waste energy when you're away from your home or office.

Whether you are at home or in the office, there are simple ways to help you reduce costs. And if you have any other ideas that you would like to share with OfficeArrow members, please let us know.