The whole concept of purchasing something for your home that provides a high degree of convenience and can save you money may seem like a paradox at first glance. In fact, many people believe that when you purchase something, you have to choose between convenience or something that saves you money.
The fact is, there’s a vast amount of gadgets and home-based items that offer convenience and can help to minimize expenses in various aspects of your life, from doors that come preassembled—saving you time and money—to energy usage monitors and energy-efficient lighting. This article highlights some of the most ingenious money-saving household items you shouldn’t overlook.
1. Battery recharger
The chances are that you never considered how much money you spend on batteries per year. But consider this, consumers spend a massive $10.7 billion per year on batteries. On top of that, the average household throws out 12 batteries per year. This number goes up for households with multiple children who may use multiple remotes and controllers. By getting a rechargeable battery station, you won’t have to throw away money every year by replacing them. Please note that for doing this, you need to buy a special kind of rechargeable batteries (accumulators) as well. You can’t just recharge your normal batteries.
2. Prehung interior door
If you’ve ever been on the market for a new door before, you more than likely have come to realize that the expenses associated with the door itself are fifty percent more than what you will have to pay to get it installed. If you choose the DIY route, you will have to dedicate a large portion of your day-off to install it unless you plan to spend your time after work to install it. Complicated manuals and inconsistent video tutorials make the concept of self-installing a door possibly a time-consuming headache. That’s the beauty behind getting prehung interior doors. They come preassembled and hanging from a frame. A prehung door eliminates the hassles of installing frames by yourself, which can save you both money and time.
3. Motion-sensing lighting system
When it comes to saving energy on the lights we use, most people are aware of the golden rule: turn it on when you enter the room and turn it off when you leave the room. While this sounds good in theory, we usually end up paying extra to our utility company because we leave the light on in various rooms from time to time. Using a motion-sensing light gadget like Lutron Maestro can turn the lights on and off. As such, you’ll never have to pay unnecessary expenses to your utility company for lights you forget to turn off, such as the closet, attic, or basement.
4. Produce freshness extender
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could extend the life of our fresh produce? Statistics indicate that the average family of four throws away $600 worth of fruits and vegetables every year because they got spoiled after being left in the fridge. But by getting a freshness extender, you can keep fruits and vegetables fresh for up to two to three months. The technology behind it is pretty ingenious. Ethylene gas is the signal fruits use to start ripening to the point where they get spoiled. But, a freshness extender essentially absorbs ethylene gas, which leads to fresher, longer-lasting products.
5. Smart thermostat
Most people leave the thermostat at a certain temperature even when they’re at work because they don’t want to come home to a cold house. But by doing this, you are literally throwing money at your heating and oil company. With a programmable thermostat, such as Google Nest E, you can customize it to your liking while you are working. For instance, when you leave, you can set the temperature to go down to 50 degrees and program it to go up to your desired temperature an hour before you get home.
6. Solar-powered lights
If you have a large backyard, you more than likely have a lighting system outside you use regularly. A more energy-efficient way to illuminate your backyard at nighttime would be to use a set of solar-powered light stakes. The best thing about them is that they charge up during the day and automatically light up at night. Some solar lights come with advanced features such as motion sensing.
Certainly, there are more savings to be made. Just think about how you consume resources like electricity, water, and other goods throughout your day. There’s a large likelihood that you can arrange for some savings by additionally changing your behavior.
Photo credit: The feature image has been done by Micheile Henderson. The vegetable shot was taken by Chantal Garnier.
Source: Product insights by Rustica / Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy
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