1. Efficient Transportation --- Transportation is a leading energy consumer. In the U.S., vehicles use more gasoline each year than the entire U.S. oil industry produces. Try to live near your work or school, and use public transportation, carpool, walk, or bike when you can. Replace your SUV with one of the new hybrid gas and electric cars and you could save as much as $11,000 on gas and produce 107 fewer tons of carbon dioxide. The new efficient hybrids are reliable and drive (and refuel) just like a standard car, with no need to recharge batteries. (see Improving Our Transportation Systems for more energy savings.)
2. Better Appliances --- Purchase energy efficient household appliances. This can make an enormous difference. For example: if you replace your 1972 refrigerator with a 2001 model, you may cut your carbon dioxide emissions by 1,100 lbs. a year and save $80 a year on your energy bill. (Install the dishwasher away from your refrigerator: the dishwasher's heat and moisture make the fridge work harder.) Replace your top-loading washing machine with a front-loader, and you may save $100 a year in energy, water and detergent. A new Energy Star refrigerator uses about 20% less energy than a standard new refrigerator and 46% less than one made before 1980. A new Energy Star washing machine uses nearly 50% less energy than a standard washer.” (For details, visit: Energy Star http://www.energystar.gov)
3. Cold Water Wash and Line Dry --- Washing clothes in cold water reduces your washer's energy use by 75% and saves almost 500 lbs. of CO2 per year. Drying clothes outside in the fresh air and sunlight not only lengthens the life of your clothes but also saves energy and 1,386 lbs. of CO2 emissions. When you need to use the clothes dryer, run full loads and use the moisture-sensing setting. Clean the lint trap after each use and clear the outdoor dryer vent frequently to eliminate blockage and reduce resistance. The same techniques apply to dish washing: Always do full loads when using your dishwasher and washing machine. Conserve energy by turning off the dry cycle on your dishwasher and air-dry the dishes instead.
4. Refrigeration Tips --- Maintain your refrigerator and freezer at the right temperature. If they're only 10 degrees F colder than necessary, your energy consumption will jump 25 percent. The refrigerator should be between 38 and 42 degrees F and the freezer between 0 and 5 degrees F. Make sure the door is sealed tightly. Check the gasket (rubber seal) for cracks and dried-on food. Choose a refrigerator with a freezer on top rather than a side-by-side unit. On average, the savings amount to 20 percent.
5. Air Conditioning --- In our part of the country, air conditioning is seldom necessary in a well-insulated home. If you increase your air conditioning thermostat by only 3°F you can save an average of 470 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year. You can save up to 3% of energy consumed for each degree the thermostat is set above 72 degrees. Ceiling or room fans can also be used to cool rooms significantly while using less energy than air conditioning. An attic "whole house" fan is an effective way of cooling your home without using the air conditioner. It forces hot air out of your home and draws cooler air in through attic vents.
6. Unplug Unnecessary Appliances --- Unplug the extra refrigerator in your basement or garage, and save 448 lbs of carbon dioxide per year. Unplug appliances like microwaves, stereos, VCRs and printers that do not have to be on all the time, but use energy when plugged in. Simply unplugging these appliances can save a lot of energy. If possible, unplug electronic devices and chargers that have a block-shaped transformer on the plug when they are not in use.
7. Lighting --- For every 75-watt incandescent light bulb which you replace with a 20-watt compact fluorescent, you’ll get the same amount of light but save 1,300 lbs. of CO2 and $55. (Compact fluorescents screw into regular sockets.) Fluorescents save 75% of the energy, yet they last much longer. Turn off unneeded lights, and save 376 lbs of carbon dioxide per year. Also, keep bulbs dust-free. Dust on a light bulb or dirt on a glass fixture can reduce the light it emits by 10 percent and make it seem that you need a higher-wattage light. When building a new home, include natural lighting features (skylights, suntubes, larger south-facing windows, etc.) to reduce the need for artificial lights. Adjust your schedule when possible to be active in daylight and sleep during the dark. Also, don't forget to flip the switch when you're leaving the room.
8. Home Heating ---Lower your thermostat in winter by 2° F and save 353 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year. Change furnace filters often because dirty filters restrict airflow and waste energy. Keep your furnace clean and properly adjusted. Switch from an oil or electric heating system to natural gas, which is more efficient. Replace simple dial-type thermostats with smart programmable thermostats. These units allow you to set the heating and cooling system to take a break while you're asleep or out, then come on at preset times to keep you comfortable when you wake up or come home. In an average house this can reduce emissions by 1,000 pounds per year—not to mention producing significant savings on your energy bill, with a quick payback of the $50–100 cost. Dress warmly to stay comfortable without turning up the heat. Lower the thermostat to 55 degrees or off at night or when leaving the house/office for an extended period of time. For every degree you lower your heat in the 60-degree to 70-degree range, you'll save up to 5% on heating costs.
9. Oven Smarts --- Minimize the number of times you open an oven door during cooking. Each time, you lose 25 to 50 degrees or more. Do not preheat longer than necessary. Ten minutes should be sufficient. Preheating is not necessary when broiling.
10. Reduce Your Home Size --- If you’re about to build or buy a new home, aim for something smaller. Many new homes are much larger per person than in the past, which increases home energy consumption dramatically for construction, heating, dehumidifying and cooling. The median size of a newly built U.S. home in 1970 was 1,500 square feet. By 2000, it had increased to 2,300 square feet, even though the median family's income hasn't changed much and family sizes are smaller now.
11. Seal Air Leaks --- One of the least expensive and most effective ways to reduce energy consumption in the home is to seal air leaks. A simple effort to weatherize your home—especially to seal any large air gaps in the attic and basement—can reduce a typical home's greenhouse gas emissions by 1,300 pounds per year. Keep your fireplace damper closed unless a fire is burning to prevent heated air from escaping through the chimney. Avoid using kitchen, bathroom and other ventilating fans in excess, as these can eject a significant amount of heated or cooled air in a very short period of time.
12. Add Insulation --- Adding attic insulation is also highly effective and can save an additional 1,300 pounds of CO2. Adding wall, attic, and basement insulation costs more per unit of energy saved, but can trim a home's CO2 emissions by 2,000 pounds per year. Pool blankets -- insulating sheets that float on the surface -- cut the energy consumption of pool heaters up to 70 percent.
13. Window Efficiency --- Adding air-gap window films or low-e films to existing windows, while not always cost-effective, can reduce your home's emissions by 1,000 pounds per year. When possible, replace old windows with new high performance, energy efficient (double-paned) windows or install storm windows. Curtains and shades can also help prevent hot or cold air from escaping.
14. Smart Landscaping --- Shading your east and west windows with overhangs or trellises or by planting shade trees are also effective ways to reduce unwanted heat gain on hot, sunny days. They also act as windbreaks in winter. Also, Plant trees or shrubs to shade air-conditioning units (but not to block the airflow.) A unit operating in the shade uses as much as 10% less electricity than the same one operating in the sun.
15. Duct Work --- Sealing and insulating heating and cooling ducts is a more expensive job, but saves more energy and therefore can reduce your emissions by an average of 1,300 pounds of carbon dioxide per year. Upgrading your heating or cooling equipment with new technology and making sure these units are regularly tuned (typically every year) will also reduce emissions by several hundred pounds.
16. Hot Water Efficiency --- Turn down your water heater to 120°F (from the usual 145°F), and you may save 163 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year. Reduce hot water consumption by installing efficient showerheads, faucets and other fixtures (see Water Conservation Tips). You can insulate the water heater with an insulating blanket. This is especially valuable for older water heaters with little internal insulation. (Be sure to leave the air intake vent uncovered when insulating a gas water heater.) When buying a new water heater, look for the most efficient and properly sized type with the lowest life-cycle cost. Better yet, install a solar hot water heater.
17. Save Energy at Work --- Turn off office equipment when not in use. Reduce energy consumption and equipment wear by setting computers, monitors, and copiers to sleep-mode. Better yet, turn them all the way off if you are not going to use them for an extended period of time, particularly when you go home at the end of the workday. To keep it simple, just plug your computer, scanner and printer into one power strip that can be switched off after shutting down your computer. Do the same with the microwave in the office lunchroom, and other office appliances which are always on otherwise. Over your lunch break, turn off your computer monitor. This will save energy without losing your work or having to reboot. Encourage your co-workers to do the same.
18. Limit Your “Stuff” Consumption --- Virtually every physical object you buy in a store requires energy for its production and/or operation. This includes clothing, accessories, household furnishings, office supplies, appliances, sporting goods, decorative objects, and toys - which all consume energy. We could easily have happy, fulfilled lives while reducing this consumption, and save tremendous energy (and money) in the process. Unclutter your life and live more simply. When you do buy, try to purchase locally made goods and avoid energy costs due to long-distance transportation.
19. Eat a Vegetarian Diet --- The production of meat, dairy, and eggs is energy intensive. We can all reduce our food energy consumption by eating plant proteins directly, converting at least some of our daily meals to vegetarian dishes. This will also be healthier for you and your family, save money, reduce water consumption, reduce water pollution, reduce landuse impacts of livestock production, and reduce the potential for animal cruelty.
21. Get Involved and Talk to Your Legislators --- Many of our current governmental regulations are not helpful for conserving energy, and some policies actually reward large energy users with lower bulk rates. Citizens need to contact their legislators and ask for better policies.
And you've reached the end of the list! Yay! Now hop to it! The EcoChallenge Team will be implementing some of these tips around the community. We plan on doing a mass unplug-a-thon at our school and write to the school board to get them to support it for all schools. This could save millions and millions of dollars in electricity bills that could be spent towards more important things. (Like better/newer textbooks, possibly?) Stay tuned for more updates concerning our awesome plan. You should try it. Get involved and help us unplug the school!
