1. Set your water heater at 120 degrees. Besides saving energy, you’ll protect your family from getting scalded by water that’s too hot. 
2. Use the energy-saver settings on your refrigerator, dishwasher, clothes washer and clothes dryer. 
3. Replace incandescent lights with compact fluorescent bulbs. CFLs use only one-fourth of the energy of traditional light bulbs. 
4. Clean or replace your air conditioner, furnace or heat-pump filters. 
5. If you have a waterbed, make it every day. The bedspread will insulate it so much that it will use one-third less energy. 
6. Crank up the thermostat by one degree during warm weather. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that you can save up to 3 percent on your summer energy bill for every degree you raise your thermostat for 24 hours. 
7. Wash your clothes in cold water. Ninety percent of the energy it takes to wash clothes is for heating the water. Cold-water detergents will get the dirt out. 
8. Set your computer and monitor to lapse into “sleep” mode rather than leaving them on when you’re not using them. They use 80 percent less electricity in “sleep” mode. 
9. Turn on your ceiling fans and raise the thermostat a little bit. The fans will circulate the cool air, which will make you feel comfortable at a warmer temperature. 
10. Use your microwave. It uses one-fifth of the energy as your regular oven, and it doesn’t add heat to the air in the kitchen. 

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