The average American household spends more than $1,300 a year on electricity.

Want to knock that down by, say, $500? You can.

Smart adjustments to your home can reduce power consumption by 40 percent. Sure, there are the tried-and-true methods, like switching to more efficient compact fluorescent lightbulbs. But the editors of Fresh Home magazine have identified many other ways to save power you might not have heard of. Here’s a sampling to get started.

Heating and cooling

• Use the bathroom fan as little as possible. A strong ceiling fan not only sucks out shower steam, but the warmth (or coolness) in the bathroom and nearby rooms.

• Close heat vents in the summer and air-conditioning vents in the winter. It’s basic physics: Cool air falls, warm air rises — often, right through open vents.

• Keep outdoor air-conditioning units out of the sun. Direct sunlight causes them to use 10 percent more electricity. Surround with tall shrubs, shade trees or high screens.

• Get a rolling air conditioner. These portable units can be moved from room to room and will vent through almost any window. They allow you to cool only the rooms people are using.

• Hold a gallon bucket under your showerhead and time how long it takes to fill. If less than 20 seconds, switch to a more efficient showerhead that reduces your hot water usage.

The Kitchen

• Buy an electric water kettle. They’re the most efficient way by far to bring water to boil. Use to preheat water for stovetop usages like making soup or pasta.

• Turn off clocks on appliances.

• Have just one refrigerator! End the long-running family tradition of having a second unit in the basement. Shop farmers’ markets more frequently so you don’t need to store so much food.

• Pack your freezer tight. It’s far more efficient to keep food frozen than to keep air at a freezing temperature.

The Laundry Room

• Sort clothes by fabric, not color. A dryer will keep going until every last piece is dry; when you dry similar fabrics, everything becomes dry at the same time.

• Throw a dry towel in with the load. Some people swear it speeds drying time.

• Wash lightly soiled everyday clothes in a cold/cold cycle. Today’s soaps work fine in cooler water.

Lighting

• When sitting, reading or watching television in a room, use lamps, not overhead lights, whenever possible.

• Switch to solar lights outdoors. The new breed of solar-powered pathway lights are reliable and attractive.

Home Entertainment

• Use power strips with on/off switches for your home entertainment and computer centers. When not in use, turn off power to everything with one switch on the power strip.

• Do a wall plug audit. Walk through your house and see how many items are plugged into the wall that don’t need to be. Then pull the plug on those you can.