If you're looking to reduce your energy consumption, but don't want to invest a whole lot of money upgrading your home with insulation, double-paned windows, and other energy-efficient appliances, you can make a small yet effective start by replacing your old manual thermostat with a simple programmable thermostat. Programmable thermostats can easily save you a lot of money on your heating costs, by managing the heat settings for you automatically.

While we all do our best to turn the heat down at night, often we neglect this simple task, leading to higher heating costs. But with a programmable thermostat, you can apply several settings that can adjust your room temperatures for when you leave for work, when you come home, when you get up, and when you go to sleep, maximizing your heating efficiency without the mundane task of constantly adjusting the heat settings. These simple devices, which can also manage your air conditioning and ventilation, can reduce costs up to 30%, making the small investment pay for itself in a very short time.

It doesn't take much to install or program a programmable thermostat. If you can handle a screwdriver, you're likely able to install a programmable thermostat. If you are smart enough to adjust the clock on your VCR (or DVD player), you can certainly manage the programming on the thermostat. Many of these will also provide extra program settings for weekends and holidays, allowing for your rotating schedule and still keeping heat on or off as you need it.

While making your home energy efficient can be a large project, especially if you live in an older home, taking these small steps can quickly add up to savings and energy conservation. So research different models of programmable thermostats from your local hardware store, and get yourself on the road to heating and energy savings, now!