Were you raised in a barn?



 Image: federico stevanin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 Were you raised in a barn? Not sure everyone has heard this question but it's a question frequented to those who can't seem to close doors behind themselves. We can go so much further than closing doors to save money on heating and air conditioning costs now days!
Have you heard of a programmable thermostat? These are amazing devices. Some let you set the temperature hour by hour for 7 different days in 2 different modes, heat and cool. What this lets you do in the summer is cool your home down a bit first thing in the morning when you're going to be around the house getting ready - then let the temperature rise a bit during the day while you're at work. Then set it to cool down to a REASONABLE temperature when you get home. Does it need to be that cool while you sleep? Probably not. Are you occasionally home unscheduled? That's fine, there is typically a home button that will set your temperature to the schedule of a weekend instead of weekday.

Try changing your temperatures by 1 degree during both the day and night. Leave it in the new setting for a week and see if it's okay. Don't punish your family for a dollar by making it a miserable temperature - but what can you live with to Feed Your Pig?