HOUSTON -- Note: The following story is a verbatim transcript of an Investigators story that aired on Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007, on KPRC Local 2 at 10 p.m.

All week, we've uncovered changes to your electric bill including new rules and extra charges. Now we have information that can help you change that bottom line -- how much money you owe every month.

Did you know in an average U.S. home, appliances and electronics account for about 20 percent of the electric bill? Investigative reporter Amy Davis did some checking to find out which ones are sucking the money right out of your wallet.

Day in and day out, we go through the same routine. We cook, wash and clean.

Like most consumers, Doreen Barone never measures her daily chores in terms of dollars.

"In the summer months, the electric bill is higher because we use more air conditioning," said Barone.

But forget about the A/C. You might be surprised which appliances are sucking you dry.

We used a "Watt-Minder," a gadget that measures how many kilowatts appliances are using, and figured how much money it's costing you to keep it powered. The Watt-Minder cost us just over $30 online, but there many different brands and products that provide the same results.

We just plugged the Watt-Minder into whatever appliance we used and plugged away.

Using a computer and monitor six hours a day, about six days a week will cost you $68.80 a year, or almost $6 a month.

Not willing to log off for just a few pennies? Turns out watching TV is cheaper entertainment. Soaking in four hours a day on a small screen TV six days a week will cost you about $18 a year.

Even a big screen adds just pennies in energy costs, for a total of $28.56 a year.

But don't sweat the small stuff. Can you guess which appliances are costing you the most?

Number five on the list of the top five energy-eating products in your home -- your cup of Joe costs some dough. Using your coffee maker two hours a day will run you $90 a year.

Number four -- your dishwasher may be cleaning you out, especially if you use that drying feature. Without it, a dishwasher will cost the average family $100 a year.

Number three -- your hair dryer blows a lot of hot air and a lot of your cash. At $120 a year, it burns just $30 less than your clothes dryer at $151.20 a year, which is the number two appliance on the list.

And the number one energy-eating appliance in your home is one you can't live without. Your refrigerator will cost you about $190 a year.

Our running total, for just using your computer, TV, coffee pot, dishwasher, hair dryer, clothes dryer and fridge, you'll pay about $62 a month. And think about it. That doesn't include your air conditioner, hot water heater or even your washing machine. A little bit adds up fast.

We used a kilowatt rate of .1245 for our unscientific experiment, but you can program the Watt-Minder with whatever rate you're paying to your electric provider.

We backed up our readings with stats compiled by the U.S. Department of Energy.

You can see the average costs of running other appliances at its Web site, www.eere.energy.gov.