Your Questions About Save Energy At Home

admin answers:

Yes, but your utility bill will be lower, as will the cost of the consumer goods those industrial plants turn out.

admin answers:

I signed up for a thing with my electric company to donate extra money for supporting more renewable sources of energy. Yeah, I figure carbon offsets work just as well.

I only turn things on when I need them.

If it’s feasible to have it unplugged, it’s unplugged til needed.

Shorter showers with cooler water.

Wash clothes when they need it instead of automatically after one wear; textile people also frown upon constantly washing clothes, so my things are in better condition longer. Also wash in cold. Most clothes are just fine with it.

Hang wet laundry to dry.

Compost instead of overusing the disposal in the sink.

Make my own cleaning products.

Not buy everything I want just because. Less consumption, less energy spent.

Take advantage of the fact that my apartment has trees by the windows and it doesn’t get that hot and use low energy fans instead of air conditioning when it’s too hot.

Use a low energy space heater instead of the central heating. They also have these new and awesome things called blankets, sweaters, and hoodies.

Use grey water for my plants.

Use recycled/ biodegradable garbage bags or simply carry my trash bin out bagless and dump it.

Recycle.

Use totes for shopping. If I do get a paper/ plastic bag, I reuse it.

Use natural light during the day rather than electric lights.

Yes, reducing energy counts. Energy byproducts pollute the environment and use resources we can ill-afford to spend, or could be spent in more efficient ways. Also, the littlest things can do amazing things to your energy bill.

Love the idea of woodburning. I don’t have a system for it, but all comunities will announce days when you can and can’t burn, so why not take advantage?

admin answers:

Try doing some of these:
1) Turn off your lights when they are not needed.
2) All the switches, including TV, computer, everything that has an on and off switch, turn it off when you leave the house. They do waste energy when you just leave them on.
3) Put soap on before you turn on the water.
4) Don’t waste shower water by just standing there with it turned on. Once again put soap on, and everything before you turn it on.
5) Recycling helps save energy somewhere else.
6) Don’t leave the radio on when you go to sleep.
7) When your doing the laundry, make sure you have enough clothes in there, so that you don’t waste the energy and water.

admin answers:

Some ways to save energy is to create your own. If your located near a stream or small river, you could set up your own hydroelectric power. You need a stationary water wheel which spins from the streams current (just like old feed mills) that is then hooked up to a generator that creates energy from the water wheel spinning the generator/turbine. Then have it hooked up to your home like solar panels or wind power and you’ll have free energy. It will be a little expensive at first but over time it will pay for itself and save you money.

admin answers:

You can’t save energy? Because energy can’t be created or destroyed.

If you meant electricity. The the answer is not to switch your lifestyle to be more electricity effecient but to make it by other means. Say like nuke power.

And if you’re so adamant about it then….

Buy energy star stuff.
Use LED light bulbs
Turn off lights and electronics when they aren’t in use…
ETC ETC ETC

admin answers:

Heating and Cooling Tips
Set your thermostat as low as is comfortable in the winter and as high as is comfortable in the summer.

Clean or replace filters on furnaces once a month or as needed.

Clean warm-air registers, baseboard heaters, and radiators as needed; make sure they’re not blocked by furniture, carpeting, or drapes.

Bleed trapped air from hot-water radiators once or twice a season; if in doubt about how to perform this task, call a professional.

Place heat-resistant radiator reflectors between exterior walls and the radiators.

Turn off kitchen, bath, and other exhaust fans within 20 minutes after you are done cooking or bathing; when replacing exhaust fans, consider installing high-efficiency, low-noise models.

During the heating season, keep the draperies and shades on your southfacing windows open during the day to allow the sunlight to enter your home and closed at night to reduce the chill you may feel from cold windows.

During the cooling season, keep the window coverings closed during the day to prevent solar gain.
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Water Heating Tips
Install aerating, low-flow faucets and showerheads.

Repair leaky faucets promptly; a leaky faucet wastes gallons of water in a short period of time.

Lower the thermostat on your water heater; water heaters sometimes come from the factory with high temperature settings, but a setting of 120°F provides comfortable hot water for most uses.

Take more showers than baths. Bathing uses the most hot water in the average household.

Insulate your electric hot-water storage tank, but be careful not to cover the thermostat. Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations.

Insulate your natural gas or oil hot-water storage tank, but be careful not to cover the water heater’s top, bottom, thermostat, or burner compartment. Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations; when in doubt, get professional help.

Insulate the first 6 feet of the hot and cold water pipes connected to the water heater.

If you are in the market for a new dishwasher or clothes washer, consider buying an efficient, water-saving ENERGY STAR model to reduce hot water use. See Appliances for more information.

Install heat traps on the hot and cold pipes at the water heater to prevent heat loss. Some new water heaters have built-in heat traps.

Drain a quart of water from your water tank every 3 months to remove sediment that impedes heat transfer and lowers the efficiency of your heater. The type of water tank you have determines the steps to take, so follow the manufacturer’s advice.
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Install tight-fitting, insulating window shades on windows that feel drafty after weatherizing.

Close your curtains and shades at night; open them during the day.

Keep windows on the south side of your house clean to let in the winter sun.

Install exterior or interior storm windows; storm windows can reduce heat loss through the windows by 25% to 50%. Storm windows should have weatherstripping at all moveable joints; be made of strong, durable materials; and have interlocking or overlapping joints. Low-e storm windows save even more energy.

Repair and weatherize your current storm windows, if necessary.

Warm Climate Windows Keep Heat Out
In the summertime, the sun shining through your windows heats up the room. Windows with spectrally selective coatings on the glass reflect some of the sunlight, keeping your rooms cooler.
Warm-Climate Window Tips
Install white window shades, drapes, or blinds to reflect heat away from the house.

Close curtains on south- and west-facing windows during the day.

Install awnings on south- and west-facing windows.

Apply sun-control or other reflective films on south-facing windows to reduce solar gain.
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Indoor Lighting Tips
Look for the ENERGY STAR label when purchasing these products.

Turn off the lights in any room you’re not using, or consider installing timers, photo cells, or occupancy sensors to reduce the amount of time your lights are on.

Use task lighting; instead of brightly lighting an entire room, focus the light where you need it. For example, use fluorescent under-cabinet lighting for kitchen sinks and countertops under cabinets.

Consider three-way lamps; they make it easier to keep lighting levels low when brighter light is not necessary.

Use 4-foot fluorescent fixtures with reflective backing and electronic ballasts for your workroom, garage, and laundry areas.

Consider using 4-watt minifluorescent or electro-luminescent night lights. Both lights are much more efficient than their incandescent counterparts. The luminescent lights are cool to the touch.

Use CFLs in all the portable table and floor lamps in your home. Consider carefully the size and fit of these systems when you select them. Some home fixtures may not accommodate some of the larger CFLs.

Recessed downlights (also called recessed cans) are now available that are rated for contact with insulation (IC rated), are designed specifically for pin-based CFLs, and can be used in retrofits or new construction.

Take advantage of daylight by using light-colored, loose-weave curtains on your windows to allow daylight to penetrate the room while preserving privacy. Also, decorate with lighter colors that reflect daylight.

If you have torchiere fixtures with halogen lamps, consider replacing them with compact fluorescent torchieres. Compact fluorescent torchieres use 60% to 80% less energy, can produce more light (lumens), and do not get as hot as the halogen torchieres. Halogen torchieres are a fire risk because of the high temperature of the halogen bulb
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Put your PC to sleep. Keep your computer and its monitor in sleep mode rather than leaving them on around the clock. You stand to use 80 percent less electricity, which over the course of a year could have the effect of cutting CO2 emissions by up to 1,250 pounds, according to EPA estimates.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

admin answers:

Standby energy is an easy place to start, most electronics use energy even when they are turned off. Use power strips with switches to plug in your tv, dvd, game system etc. And flip them all off when not in use. Shut down your desk top when not in use, make sure the speakers and monitor are also off or unplugged, a surge suppressor with a switch makes it easier. Unplug chargers including laptop, battery chargers, electric tooth brushes and ipod docking stations. Many use energy even when empty.

Use drapes on windows, block drafts, weather strip and insulate. Turn your thermostat down a few degrees and replace with a programmable thermostat if possible, make sure filters are in place and clean.