Ever wonder what you could save by changing your thermostat setting or adding storm windows? Now you can find out with just a few clicks of your computer mouse.

Give it a try using CoServ Electric's HomeEnergy Calculator.

The calculator's quick, one-screen form asks about a dozen questions about your home. Simply click to indicate your home's approximate square footage, age, number of occupants, fuel type and a few other variables. Then hit "calculate" to get an estimate of the monthly and annual energy use and costs for your "base house".

Now the fun begins. What changes would you like to consider? One step might be to reduce the temperature on your water heater. Try making that change on the calculator's drop-down menu and click "calculate" again to see what you might save. Then try some other things: adjusting heating settings down or cooling settings up, tightening up your home by reducing air leaks, adding insulation, installing storm windows or changing out your heating system. Click "calculate" after each change to see the difference in your monthly energy bill.

Once you've gotten a feel for your home's energy costs and what various changes might save, it's time to take a big-picture look at overall home energy usage. Click the "chart" button and you'll see a pie chart with the percentage breakdown of total annual energy use by appliance or system type. With one more click you can display a colorful, stacked bar chart showing monthly energy use by system.

Notice that each of the items on the calculator's face is a clickable link. By clicking on "Heat Type" or any other of the links, you are taken to an encyclopedia of home energy information that can help you better understand that system, how it operates and what improvements are possible.

Try this new online tool next time you are surfing the Internet. It's available 24/7, and is just one more way we're working to help you manage your home energy costs.

If you would like to have a CoServ Electric energy consultant conduct an onsite audit of your home, please send an e-mail to contact@coserv.com.