It’s no secret that energy prices are on the rise and the amount of energy resources are on the decline. Efforts are underway on many fronts to use the resources we have in a more environmentally friendly way and to look for clean renewable energy sources.
However, until these new ways to produce electricity are developed, we all need to use what energy we have in the most efficient way we can. The energy savings tips offered here can help you do that.
Lighting Efficiency
- Replace your regular light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. They use just a fourth of the energy. Most take up a little more space than regular bulbs, but they will still fit in lots of light fixtures.
- A 15 watt compact fluorescent light puts out the same amount of light as a 60 watt incandescent bulb. But the 60 watt bulb will cost 50 cents per month to operate for 5 hours every day while the compact fluorescent will only cost 13 cents!
- Your father was right, you don’t own the electric company (although you do own your cooperative) so turn the lights off. About 5-10% of your electricity bill goes into your light bulbs, so this really could make a difference. By the way, this rule applies to both incandescent and fluorescent lights.
Water Heating
- Set your water heater at 120 degrees Fahrenheit. That should be plenty comfortable. Each 10 degree reduction in the water temperature setting cuts the heater’s energy consumption by 3-5 %. Consider washing your clothes in the “cool” or “warm” setting. Your dishwasher will still get dishes clean if it has an internal heater to finish heating the water to 140 degrees. If it doesn’t have an internal heater, keep the water heater at 140 degrees.
- Supporters of on demand water heaters sometimes, called “Tankless” water heaters, claim they save a lot of energy. However, the energy savings from this type of water heater compared to a conventional tank style water heater amount to less than $20 a year. A whole house on demand water heater will cost as much as $1,000 more than a tank style water heater. That’s a 50 year payback.
Oven Efficiency
- Self-cleaning ovens, both gas and electric, are more energy efficient than those without the feature because of their extra insulation. But be sure not to use the self-cleaning feature more often than once a month, since it burns energy.
HVAC Maintenance
- Check the air filters on furnaces and heat pumps once a month. Dust in them makes the blower work harder, leading to higher energy bills. So clean or replace the filters if you see dirt. Replacement filters are cheap, but if you don’t have room to store them or never seem to have one on hand when you need one, consider getting a washable filter.
Insulation and Sealing
- Wet spray cellulose insulation is not only a great way to slow the transfer of heat through a wall, but it also stops air leakage and is a great sound insulator!
- The single biggest factor that wastes the energy needed to heat your home is air leakage. Spending a few dollars on sealing leaks around doors, windows, and other “holes” to the outside can mean hundreds of dollars in energy savings.
- Caulk cracks and gaps less than one-quarter inch wide. Look for gaps around electrical outlets and switches on exterior walls; where pipes go through insulated floors and ceilings; around window, door and baseboard moldings; and where wires go through insulated floors, ceilings and walls.
Refrigeration
- Check the seals on your refrigerator’s door. A neat trick to use on older models that don’t have magnetic door seals is to close the door on a dollar bill. Try this in 5 locations around the door. If the door doesn’t hold the bill firmly in place you probably have leaky seals letting cold air out.
- Also if there are cracks, breaks, or brittleness in the rubbery gasket that goes around the door, you should replace the seals.
- Consider whether it’s time for a new refrigerator and/or freezer. If you are using an old refrigerator, say since the early 70s, you are using about 3 times as much energy to run it as you would to run one sold last year.
Temperature Control
- In cold climates, such as Ohio, turn the temperature down to 68 degrees Fahrenheit during the day when you’re home and 55 degrees at night and during days when no one is home. For every degree you turn your home’s thermostat down you reduce your heating needs by about 2 percent.
- An air conditioner both cools and dehumidifies the air. Over sizing an air conditioner will not lower your energy costs, and it may not allow the air conditioner to run long enough to remove the humidity from the air. This may make you feel cold and clammy instead of cool and dry.
Efficient Appliance Usage
- Look around your home for those black “wall pack” boxes (DC transformers) that are powering your portable TV, cordless phone, hand-held vacuum, answering machine, rechargeable tool, and electric toothbrush. As long as those boxes are plugged into the wall they are drawing 2-6 watts of power, even after the appliance is fully charged. So unplug the wall packs for appliances that are not often used.
- If you don’t already have one, consider installing a heat pump in your home. A heat pump will both heat and cool your home. And, at today’s energy prices it will cost less to operate than natural gas or propane systems.