The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) offers these tips on easy methods to reduce energy consumption in your home.

Turn down the temperature of your water heater to the warm setting (120°F). You'll not only save energy, you'll avoid scalding your hands.

Start using energy-saving settings on refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines, and clothes dryers.

Survey your incandescent lights for opportunities to replace them with compact fluorescents (CFLs). These lamps can save three-quarters of the electricity used by incandescents. The best targets are 60-100W bulbs used several hours a day. New CFLs come in many sizes and styles to fit in most standard fixtures.

Read more at http://www.aceee.org/consumer/home-energy-checklist.