The holiday season can be an exciting, but hectic time. One thing that you should not have to be stressed about is your electricity bill. Unfortunately, however, the holiday season can make your energy bill spike. With all the cooking and likely having more people in your home, you may end up seeing an increase in your energy usage around Thanksgiving. Luckily for you, there are several ways you can help to reduce your energy on Thanksgiving and help to save your energy bill.

Optimize the Oven

There are several tricks to make sure you are optimizing your oven on Thanksgiving and making sure you are using as little energy as possible. Here are some examples:

  • Do not open the oven unless you need to: opening the oven to look at the food can lower the temperature up to 20 degrees.
  • There is no need to preheat if the dish is going to take more than an hour to cook.
  • Use glass and ceramic dishes: they retain heat better than metal and will allow you to lower the oven’s temperature by 25 degrees.
  • Bake multiple dishes at once to reduce the time the oven is on.
  • Buy a smaller turkey: if it is possible for you to cut down the size of your turkey, it will not have to cook as long and you will save on your electricity.

Use the Stove

While most Thanksgiving dishes require an oven, it may be a good idea to use the stove when you can. If you do use the stove, be sure to keep pots and pans covered and use the lowest heat setting to conserve even more energy.

Use a Slow Cooker

A slow cooker is a great tool that many people do not take advantage of. It takes so little effort to use and helps to save dishes as well as electricity. Ten hours of using a slow cooker only costs about 21 cents. Like with the oven, avoid lifting the lid for a peak. If you do this, it can release enough heat to add 25 more minutes to your cook time.

Turn Down the Thermostat

You can take advantage of all the action going on in the kitchen. If you turn down the thermostat a few degrees, you can save on electricity. Utilize the heat from the oven and the body heat from all the extra people to heat your home if it is cold outside.

Let Leftovers Cool

One of the best parts of Thanksgiving is that, with leftovers, it can end up lasting for weeks. Just make sure you are being smart with your leftovers if you want to end up saving energy. Always let the food cool before putting it into the fridge. If you put hot food back into the refrigerator, it can raise the temperature of the whole fridge and cause it to work harder to stay cool.

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