Repairing an old, faulty appliance may seem like the cheaper option, but this may not be the best strategy when we think about energy efficiency. A key reason electric bills are so high is because old, inefficient appliances are eating up more energy than they are worth. “Knowing how much energy your appliances use annually can be a great money saver,” says Molly Hall, Executive Director of the Energy Education Council. “You can then make smart decisions on whether it would cost less to keep an old appliance running or buy a newer, more efficient one.” If your appliance is nearing the end of its life span the Energy Efficiency Resource Center has a good article to help you calculate repair vs replace.