You may have already noticed we’re running a series on how to winterize your home. Now that the chilly weather is upon us, there are plenty of options that can save you money, even options that don’t seem like money-savers.

An investment in your home such as the ones presented below will not only save you money in the long run, but potentially increase the value of your home if you’re not going to be in it for the long run. As we said elsewhere, if you are a renter, check with your landlord.

Often they’ll be willing to help out with the expense in order to invest long term solutions to the yearly cold weather utility bills. This first one, in fact, is less an expense and more of an investment:

An Energy Monitor

Use your favorite search engine to find an energy monitor that might be in your price range. Some of the more affordable models can be obtained for less than a hundred dollars. We tried to find a link to one that was not a specific brand name but couldn’t (CASH 1 does not endorse any specific brand of energy monitor and we want to be impartial here).

Essentially, these devices connect to your home’s utility box and monitor how much electricity you use a month. They can even be set to monitor a specific appliance or certain times of the day. The device sends a graphic report to your computer or smart phone and you can see exactly how much electricity you’re using and during which parts of the day.

This helps you reduce unnecessary electrical usage. One company claims the device can help you save up to 20% a month on your utility bill. That can add up to hundreds of dollars a year. This device especially can come in handy during the winter months when utilities tend to be higher due to heating.

A Smart Meter

Your local utility may have sent you a notice in the past couple of years notifying you that a smart meter was available to install on your house. In some communities they are mandatory, but elsewhere, homeowners have been given the option of keeping their old analogue dial meters.

If you have not exercised the option of a smart meter yet, we seriously recommend that you do so at your earliest convenience. These meters aren’t just far more accurate than the old analogue energy meters, but they use smart technology to transmit your energy use to the local utility, saving them the money of having to pay a meter reader. This also cuts down on energy costs such as fuel for company vehicles, etc.

We know this isn’t necessarily a cold weather issue, but it will save you money almost immediately. If you don’t have a smart meter on your home, call your local utility and ask for one. Most utilities provide and install them free of charge. Did you do a search for ‘energy monitor’ yet? If you’re convinced this will save you money in the long run, but don’t exactly have the cash to get one now, come see us at CASH 1.

We have Payday Loans in Nevada and Auto Title Loans in Arizona and Nevada to fit just about any need. We can loan you money in the short term to help save a lot of money in the long term.