Turn your thermostat down at night and when you are away from home. For every 1 degree Celsius you lower your thermostat, you can save 2 to 4 per cent on your heating costs. Try 17 degrees at night and when no one is at home and 20 degrees the rest of the time. During the heating season, close your blinds or curtains after sunset.

Install a programmable thermostat. It will automatically turn the house temperature up or down when you get up, go to bed, and go out.

Install a door sweep. A door sweep installed on the bottom of your exterior door will significantly reduce the amount of cold air seeping into your home. 

Turn off your computer when not in use. Computers and other electronics account for a growing energy load in most homes, and often use energy even when switched off. When away for extended periods of time, unplug equipment on standby such as a computer, monitor, TV, DVD or stereo.

Set the temperature in your refrigerator between 1.7 and 3.3 degrees Celsius (35-38 degrees Fahrenheit) for the refrigerator compartment and minus 18 degrees Celsius. (0 degrees Fahrenheit) for the freezer, if you have separate controls.

Don't peek while using your oven; you lose about 20 per cent of the heat every time you open the door.

Reheat small food portions with your microwave oven. It uses less than one-half the energy of a conventional oven/range.

Use the short-wash cycle on your dishwasher. Turn it off and open the door at the start of the dry cycle.

Buy energy-efficient appliances. Some refrigerators use as little as 400 kilowatt hours of electricity per year and half the energy of standard fridges from the early 1990s and one quarter of those from the early 1980s.

Consider a front-loading washing machine. It uses about half the water, electricity and detergent of a top-loading washer. Front loaders also cut dryer costs because their high-speed spin cycle wrings more water from clothes.

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