The cold mornings can be harsh here, especially in the middle of the winter season. It’s not very unusual for the morning temperatures to stay in the single digits. In the winter, I try to get up early to start laundry. I like to have a load in the dryer, before the kids get up for school. They can get warm school clothes right out of the dryer, and the extra heat helps save on our electric bills. Since the house is cold in the mornings, we always turn up the heater. Adjusting the heater every morning, was costing us a huge fortune for utility allowances. I started reading some helpful Mom websites, and one of them suggested using the dryer as an alternative heating source. I started getting up early and doing laundry. I immediately noticed the warmth on the first day. I didn’t mind starting on laundry first thing in the morning, because laundry is my favorite chore. On the third day, I started to notice that our furnace wasn’t cycling as frequently. I knew that meant savings on our bills. After two months of using the dryer in the morning, I saw the savings on our electric bill. Our normal January heating bill is close to $350. It was closer to $300, after using the furnace less frequently. Most people laugh when I say the dryer is my alternative heating unit. It works well and saves us money. I still can’t find any way to help the A/C in the summer, but at least we can save money during one of the seasons.