| New England Energy Audit ELECTRICITY SAVING TIPS |
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| 866-603-ENERGY OR E-MAIL: INFO@NEWENGLANDENERGYAUDIT.COM |
If you are thinking about purchasing a new refrigerator, look for ENERGY STAR
energy, save money, and help the environment.
For manual defrost freezers, don't let ice build up more than 1/4 in. When this
happens, the efficiency of the freezer drops significantly.
Keep your freezer at a temperature between 0-5 degrees F. Settings below this
use more energy and are not necessary. Additionally, keep your freezer full. Use
jugs of water, loaves of bread, bags of ice, etc. Doing this will keep your
refrigerator from having to work so hard. Also if you experience a power outage
this will help keep the food colder for a longer period of time.
The opposite is true for the refrigerator section. Here you want the air to flow
evenly. Refrigerators operate most efficiently when full but not overloaded.
Try to locate your freezer in a cooler part of the house. Make sure you keep it out
of direct sunlight and away from appliances that generate heat like ovens and
water heaters.
Opening the refrigerator door accounts for between $10-$20 of a typical family's
electricity bill each year based on 40-60 openings per day.
Check the door seals on your refrigerator by closing the door on a dollar bill. If
you can easily pull the dollar out then you would probably benefit by replacing the
seal. The right seal for your refrigerator can be difficult to find, but you might try a
refrigeration parts store.
Keep your refrigerator out of direct sunlight and in as cool a location as possible.
Keep away from oven, stoves, water heaters, etc.
Make sure your refrigerator is level, If it is not level the door might not close fully.
Keep foods covered to prevent moisture build-up. Your refrigerator has to work
harder if the air inside is humid.
Refrigerators operate most efficiently when full but not overloaded.
Allow leftovers to cool before putting in the refrigerator.
Allow at least one inch of space on each side of the refrigerator for good
circulation. Poor circulation can increase energy consumption by 10%.
If your refrigerator has a moisture control switch ('anti sweat' heater) you can
generally safely turn it off on all but the hottest days (and even then if you have
central air), and reduce the energy cost of your refrigerator by about 10%. Here
in the Northeast we generally do not need to use this setting, except when
experiencing those hot humid spells.
Replacing an old refrigerator can be a very good investment.
Clean the cooling coils and vacuum behind your refrigerator at least once a year,
making sure to remove dirt and dust from the coils. Dust build-up not only
increases energy use, but it may cause the unit to break down. (Some
refrigerators have the coils inside or underneath where you can't get at them.
Most built-in models have them readily accessible on top, typically behind a
removable grille). If you have animals you will want to do this more often.
An older second refrigerator consumes a significant amount of energy. It could be
costing you over $200 per year! Perhaps you can get all your food into one
refrigerator and turn the other off permanently. Alternatively, if you only need the
second unit on during certain occasions, you can pull the plug and then plug it
back in only when you need it. This won't hurt the refrigerator and can result
in significant savings.
Keep refrigerators in a cool spot as a five-degree difference in air temperature
can have a 20% impact on the energy consumption of your refrigerator. Keep
spare refrigerators in the coolest part of the house.
Organize your freezer. Mark items in your freezer for quick identification so that
you do not have to keep the door open while you sort through packages.
Clothes Washer Tips
If you are thinking about purchasing a new clothes washer, look for ENERGY
STAR ® models. These are the most energy efficient models on the market and
will save energy, save money, and help the environment.
If you are thinking of replacing your washing machine, consider a horizontal axis,
or front-loading unit. Recent research has shown that these machines can reduce
energy use by over 50%, use significantly less water, require less detergent and
shorter drying cycles, and reduce wear and tear on clothes. Several U.S.
manufacturers now have front load models in the larger sizes preferred by
Americans.
Wash with cold water. Most people in the appliance industry agree that cold
water washes just as effectively as warm. By eliminating warm rinse cycles, the
average consumer will save about $25 per year with electric hot water, or $10 with
gas.
Soak cycles can allow for shorter wash times. For heavily soiled clothes, instead
of a heavy wash cycle, try soaking and then using a shorter wash cycle.
Sort clothes by degree of dirtiness. Use shorter wash cycles for lightly soiled
clothes.
Match the load setting to the size of the load. The load setting on your washer
determines how much water is used. Smaller sized loads require less water.
Your clothes washer uses just about the same amount of energy regardless of
how much clothing is being washed. Washing two small loads uses approximately
twice as much energy as combining them into one full load. By combining loads
together you reduce the number of loads you wash which in turn reduces your
energy use
Lighting Tips
Compact Flourescents, Compact Flourescents!!!!!
If you are thinking about purchasing new lighting fixtures or bulbs, look for the
ENERGY STAR® label. Bulbs and fixtures bearing the ENERGY STAR® label are
the most energy efficient models on the market and will save energy, money, and
help the environment.
This energy saving measure has been around since Edison first turned a light on,
and it's as effective as ever. Keep in mind that a typical light bulb kept on for 24
hours per day will cost you about $75.00 each year. Try motion sensors that turn
lights off automatically when everyone leaves a room.
Timers that automatically turn lights on and off can reduce your energy use and
at the same time increase safety by making a house seem occupied even when
people are away. Dirt, along with being unsightly, can absorb as much as 50% of
the light.
Consider the cost of lighting your home. Do you realize that the money you spend
on light bulbs is probably only 5-10% of the total cost? The other 90-95% is the
cost of electricity to run those bulbs. That's why you should look for more efficient
rather than cheaper light bulbs, and why compact fluorescent lights are so
appealing.
Use one bulb instead of multiple bulbs whenever possible. A single 100-watt
incandescent bulb produces the same amount of light as two 60-watt bulbs, and it
uses 20% less energy.
Do you have light bulbs that are difficult to get to and a real pain to change?
Long-life incandescent bulbs last two to three times longer than a standard bulb
and compact fluorescent lamps last up to ten times longer.
Light colored walls and surfaces reflect light while dark colors absorb light. The
same light fixture in two different rooms will provide different levels of light on a
reading surface.
Translucent lamp shades provide more light to a room than solid colored shades.
Instead of elaborate outside lighting, try accenting walkways and drives. This will
save energy and provide safe light for people walking in hazardous winter
conditions.
When unplugging lights, always pull on the plug and not the cord. Over time
pulling on the cord will damage it and create a hazard.
That halogen torchiere was cheap and attractive; but did you know you could be
spending 2-3 times the purchase price per year in electricity costs. The lamps
also have been shown to be fire hazards. A compact fluorescent torchiere is
safe, and can save over $30 per year in electricity costs.
Use daylight whenever possible, rather than turning on redundant overhead
lighting.
Water Heater Tips
Lower the temperature of your water heater. This not only saves energy, but it
reduces the chance of scalding. A 10° F reduction in temperature saves about
13% of your water heating costs. For an average family this amounts to savings
of $30 if you heat water with gas or $60 with electricity. A temperature setting of
120° F is fine, unless your dishwasher doesn't have a booster heater.
Wrap and reap (the energy savings). Wrapping your water heater with an
insulating blanket can save $20 annually if you have gas hot water or $50 if you
have electric. To see if your tank needs an insulation blanket, place your hand on
the tank. If it feels warm then you need a blanket.
If the pipes that supply hot water throughout your house are hot to the touch,
then heat is being lost. By insulating hot water pipes you can reduce this loss.
Start at the water heater and insulate all of the accessible pipe. If the pipe where
cold water enters the water heater also feels warm, then you should insulate that
pipe as well.
Minimize water use while brushing teeth, shaving, and washing hands in bathroom
sinks. A faucet that leaks one drip per second can waste 400 gallons of water a
year. If the water is hot, that 400 gallons will cost you about $8 if you heat water
with electricity or $4 if you heat water with gas, plus the cost of the water itself.
Federal standards limit new showerheads to no more than 2.5 gallons per minute,
because the energy and water savings are enormous. Replacing older
showerheads with low flow units could save a family of four as much as 15,000
gallons of water per year, reducing water heating costs by over $150 for electric
hot water and over $60 for gas.
Install a water softener unit in-line before the water heater. This will prevent
sediment from building up in the bottom of the water heater.
