Here are a few ways to cut back on your electric bill:

*If you have old, outdated appliances like refrigerators, get newer ones. Yes, this will cost more to start out with, but you will recoup your investment and everything after that is savings. Old appliances use a LOT more energy than new appliances. If you have a ten year old refrigerator, washer, or dryer, get rid of it and get a new one. With new technology it uses a lot less energy and they will last you for many years. You will notice cheaper electric bills. It may take you a year and a half to recoup your investment but everything after that is savings. If the appliance lasts you 15 years, then that’s 13 and 1/2 years of savings.

*Turn the thermostat to 76 degrees. Then use big fans to cool the rooms you are using. Ceiling fans are great for making the room feel cooler, but if you don’t have a ceiling fan, stick to regular fans.

*Turn off your computer at night. Some people think it saves energy just to keep it on all the time, but that’s not true. If there will be say, 10 hours you are not going to use your computer, then turn it off and save electricity.

Ok, I have come across some pretty ridiculous fees for various stuff, but I have finally come across the most ridiculous fee ever in the history of fees.

I recently got a new credit card, my second one. I want credit cards to improve my credit score and to have for emergencies.

My first credit card is from Capital One and I always pay my bill online with my debit card. I don’t like to deal with writing checks and going to the post office to buy stamps and all that hassle.

So I went online to pay my balance on this new credit card from Credit One and what do you know, I have to pay a $5.95 fee just for paying my bill online!

THAT’S RIDICULOUS AND STUPID!

You want to charge me a fee to pay my bill?!?!

So being frugal, I hate to throw away $5.95 when I could use that to go by a pizza at Little Caesars or a bag full of books at the thrift store, but I had no choice because my bill was due the next day and if I was late in paying it, I would be charged a $20 late fee.

So if I have to choose between throwing away $6 or $20, I guess I have to throw away $6.

Could you imagine going to a store and at the cash register, your items are wrung up and then the cashier says,  “I have to charge you a fee for shopping at our store.” You’d probably be peeved cause that would be crazy. And it’s insane to charge customers a fee for paying their credit card bill.

They already charge a yearly membership fee, interest, late fees, over the limit fees, and research fee (whatever THAT is) and they want to charge a pay your bill fee on top of that?!?!

If someone only paid their bill with their debit card, it would be literally impossible to pay off their credit card balance. If they paid off the balance in full, they would be charged that stupid $5.95 fee. Then they would just be in a cycle of paying $5.95 every month for paying their bill.

So I am going to write a check, mail it to Credit One Bank, pay off my entire balance (which isn’t much) and never, ever use that credit card again.

If you forget to pay your bills on time, you are charged a late fee. Those fees can really add up, especially if you are forgetful or a procrastinator.

Sign up for automatic payment. Not all, but many companies offer to deduct your monthly bill straight out of your bank account or charge the bill to your credit card once a month. That way, your bill is paid on time every month, so you don’t have to worry about late fees.

Here’s a tip to save a few bucks from your heating bill. Say you live in a house and your family spends most of the time in the living room. But you are paying to heat all those other rooms that no one is using. Get one of those electric room heaters, turn your thermostat down even lower, and use the room heater in the living room.

The electric heater will keep your living room nice and warm while the rooms not in use will be cold. This will make your heating bill go down. When it’s time to go to sleep in the cold bedrooms, get under nice and heavy winter blankets.

The cost of heating oil and propane will be 28% higher this winter than last year while electricity and natural gas will be up about 7%. Some electricity companies are also hiking up rates to compensate for the higher costs of fuel.

Basically, everyone will have to spend more money to stay warm this winter. The lucky people are those who live in warm climates where it doesn’t get cold. But they are the ones paying the bigger bills to stay cool in the summer.

People might start going back to wood burning stoves again to be able to afford to stay warm. People who are already living pay check and pay check just can’t afford a bigger portion of their paychecks going to the utility companies.

Maybe the Amish are on to something here. They stay warm with wood burning stoves and at night they use kerosene lamps for light. And they have no electricity bills! Think of all the money we’d save if we didn’t have to pay any heating or light bills! But, we are too dependent on these modern convienances and can’t just drop them. We will have to find the money to pay more for them however.

Now that the heat is on, I am terrified to see what my electric bill is. And it’s not even gotten to the really cold weather yet which will be December, January and February.