1) Install low flow showerheads. You can buy these at any hardware store for about $5-$10.The ones I installed, have a button to turn them off that helps save even more water.
2) Caulk your windows and around doors. Good caulking costs around $7/tube and you should be able to do your whole house with 3-4 tubes. You’ll save enough in one winter to recover your investment. You can pay a handyman to do this or do it yourself. There are caulking tools you can buy that will make your work easy and look professional.
3) Turn your water heater down to 120*. If you have Natural Gas service you could also consider a Tankless Water Heater. They can pay for themselves in 2-3 years.
4) Buy a Programmable Thermostat.. You can find them at any major lumber/hardware outlet. The cost range is $30-$100 for a good one. Set it to 68* in the winter and around 78* in the summer. This may take getting used to, but remember, the objective here is to lower your utility bill.
5) Wash clothes in cold water whenever you can. I’ve noticed some of the laundry soap companies are making detergent for coldwater washing.
6) Change your light bulbs to Compact Florescent light bulbs (CFL). Have you looked at these? They use a fraction of the electricity and last 5 times longer so the savings is huge. They do cost more up front but they use a fraction of the electricity and last so much longer.
7) After you install your new (CFL) be sure to turn the light off when you leave the room. I’m on my wife all the time about leaving the light on. I suspect I do some things that she doesn’t approve of. One would be that whole toilet seat up/down thing.
Turn off all your appliances that have standby features. It’s amazing how much power these things draw. I’m talking about your PC, Stereo, TV, and Cable or Satellite Receiver. This also ties in with tip # 9.
9) Buy a power strip to plug all of the above into. Then you can turn them all off at the same time. You could also buy one with a built in surge protector. It doesn’t cost much more and will protect all of your expensive equipment from lightning.
10) This is probably the most costly of all. Add insulation to your attic and or crawl space. Or you could install Radiant Barrier. Trust me this is easy. You can find Radiant Barrier where you buy your thermostat and CFLs. A 1,000Sq Ft roll is about $130. In my opinion it will do as good a job as adding insulation at half the cost. Again any handy man can install it for you in one day.