Four Great Ways to Save Money and Energy Today

Ways to save energy

One: Change Your Light Bulbs

Traditional incandescent light bulbs are highly wasteful compared to
compact fluorescent light bulbs. Energy Star qualified CFL bulbs use 75
percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs. They also last up
to ten times as long, which equals an energy savings of roughly thirty
dollars per bulb. They also affect energy costs indirectly during home
cooling season, as they produce 75 percent less heat than conventional
bulbs. CFLs work best in open fixtures that allow airflow, so take this
design limitation into consideration when planning your remodelling
projects. If you switch all your light bulbs today, you’ll notice the
difference in your electricity use within a single billing cycle.

Two: Turn Them Off

One of the very easiest ways to save energy is simply to turn off lights
and appliances when not in use. Even when turned off, though,
appliances that are plugged in continue to draw a small amount of
energy—one simple way to handle this problem is to plug several
appliances into a power strip, and then turn off or unplug the power
strip. If you are a person who has difficulty remembering to turn off
lights and appliances, you may wish to look into the Watt Stopper line
of switches and power strips. Watt Stopper’s products feature motion
sensors that detect movement and turn off lights and appliances when
nobody’s around. The company offers automatic wall switches,
programmable light control panels, and a surge protector power strip
with eight outlets—two that stay switched on regardless of occupancy,
and six that are controlled by an occupancy sensor. Plug your computer
into one of the “on” outlets and other electronics, such as lamps and
televisions, into the sensor-controlled ones to maximize energy
efficiency while minimizing potential problems.

Three: Manage Your Airflow

Properly managed air movement in warm weather moves heat up and
out of your home, which means more comfortable days with fresh air
for you and less money and energy spent on air conditioning. Managing
air flow doesn’t mean just opening up your windows, though. To get
the most out of nature’s air conditioning, you’ll need to examine the
way winds move around your home. Pay attention to which way the
wind blows on warm days, then open the windows on the windy side
and its opposite. If you find that the air around your home is just not
very windy, then you can still manage your airflow by treating the north
side (which is usually the coolest wall) as the “windy” side and opening
both north and south-facing windows.
Cooling air flow is most effective when the windward/inlet windows
and the leeward/outlet windows are equal in size. You can also
experiment with having a larger outlet side to see how that affects air
movement in your home. The farther the vertical distance between
your lowest inlet and highest outlet, the faster air will move through
your home—which means more heat moving out and more cool air
moving in. If you don’t have any particularly high windows, you may
wish to consider installing an attic vent. Open stack, turbine, and
deflector rooftop style vents, which require no electricity to operate,
can all lower the temperature in your attic an average of 30 degrees
Fahrenheit on a hot day.

Four: Add Thermal Mass

Thermal mass is, simply, any material that absorbs heat when sun
shines on it–then slowly releases it back into the air during the night.
Stone, dirt, brick, concrete, and even water are all great sources of
thermal mass. Thermal mass saves you money by heating your actual
home, rather than the air inside it. In colder climates, interior thermal
mass is especially y helpful for storing heat during winter days. Exterior
thermal mass works well in warmer, drier climates. Quick and easy
ways to incorporate thermal mass into your home include:

•  Adding thick tiles or brick panels as decoration around your home, especially in spots that receive a great deal of sun light.
• Large potted plants or even small, indoor trees are also very good sources of thermal mass. Don’t use plastic pots—to hold and store heat, ceramics are preferable. Water is an excellent thermal mass material, so plants that are comfortable in damp soil are a far better choice than cactuses! Large, leafy plants don’t just add thermal mass but also help with interior shading when they are placed in front of windows—you may wish to move your plants according to season to maximize this effect.

• After washing the dishes, leave your sink full of water until it cools all the way off—the heat from the water will disseminate into the room. Likewise, you can leave your bath water in the tub until it cools down. You’ve already paid for that heat, so don’t send it down the drain.

• If you store jugs of water for emergencies (always a good idea, no matter where you live), keep them in your house—beneath thesink or in a closet—rather than in a basement or garage. Even if they aren’t receiving direct sun light, water jugs store heat very efficiently and release it slowly when the air surrounding them is at its coolest.