Home Energy Conservation Measures part2
As we said last time your home uses energy every day, all day long. It uses energy for heating and cooling, for lighting and hot water, for appliances and home electronics etc. We all need to learn how to use the energy in your home more efficiently. You can also learn how to use renewable energy to provide your home with electricity, heating, cooling, and water heating.
So here is my second bunch of ideas to help you conserve energy.
Lighting
- Don’t leave lights on when no one is in the room. Get used to turning off the light if you are going to be out of the room for more than five minutes.
- If you know of a light that everyone forgets to turn off, make a sticker or a sign to hang next to the switch that says “Lights Out!” or “Don’t Forget!”
- Where possible, switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs. They produce the same amount of light but only use 1/4 of the electricity. Plus, they last for years and years without burning out.
- Use the right type of lamps for the right purpose (don’t use the CFLs in bathrooms, store rooms, etc., where switching frequency is more and usage time is less)
- Ensure the correct disposal of lamps, particularly the fluorescent ones which can result in mercury pollution
- If you can make changes electrically make lighting control as “local” as possible
- Paint your walls and ceilings a light color
- Maximize your use of daylight
- Keep room surfaces, lamps and shades clean
Audio and Video
- The size of the equipment purchased should meet the requirements as closely as possible.
- Wide screen televisions with stereo or surround sound are less energy efficient than televisions with more basic functions.
- Do not leave televisions, video cassette recorders or music system on standby. Leaving any equipment in standby mode is wastage of energy.
-Turn off the TV when no one is watching it. The same goes for radios and stereos – if no one is using it, turn it off.
- Televisions, video cassette recorders and music system require almost no time to become fully operational and should not be left in standby mode. (off using remote controls).
Computers
- Do not turn on your computer until you need to use it, and turn it off when you are finished.
- Set your computer to go into “sleep” mode when not in use.
- Computer peripherals such as scanners and printers also consume electricity; turn them off when they are not being used.
- Take advantage of the energy saving features like an energy saving screen saver that will automatically put the monitor into sleep mode after a specified period of inactivity.
- A computer with a low-profile or “small form factor” chassis generally consumes less energy than a mini-tower or full-sized desktop machine. (The larger machines require more robust power supplies to accommodate expansion options such as additional drives or plug-in cards. Often the expansion capabilities are not used.) Laptop computers are even more efficient.
- Flat-panel displays, although more expensive than conventional (CRT) monitors, are far more energy efficient. They are also more space efficient.
- A shared, networked printer can be more efficient than purchasing a personal printer for each individual in an office. Also consider getting a printer with duplex capability to allow printing on both sides of a sheet of paper. Finally, if you are looking for a personal printer, note that inkjet printers consume much less electricity than laser printers.
- Configuring a computer to save electricity is easy. Activate your computer’s power management features by following the Windows configuration instructions below
Windows 98/ME/2000/XP:
1. Click the Start menu and select “Settings”
2. Select “Control Panel”
3. In the window that opens, double-click “Power Management”
4. Click the “Power Schemes” tab at the top of the window
5. Select “Home/Office Desk”
6. Set “Turn off monitor” and/or “Turn off hard disks” to 30 minutes
- Turn off the computer when no one is using it, – if no one is using it, turn it off. Turn off all the appliances at the surge protector/control strip – that four- or six-plug extension chord that you plug all your computer attachments in. Some devices, like modems or other networking boxes are drawing small amounts of power all the time. The best thing to do is turn them ALL off at the surge protector, after use. Don’t Leave Things Turned On
Have fun using these ideas to save energy in your home and make your use of energy one that your children and the environment will benefit from.
Home Energy Conservation Measures
Your home uses energy every day, all day long. It uses energy to keep you warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It uses energy to provide you with light when you need it. It uses energy to provide you with hot water. And it uses energy to run all of your appliances and home electronics. You need to learn how to use the energy in your home more efficiently. You can also learn how to use renewable energy to provide your home with electricity, heating, cooling, and water heating.
So here are a bunch of ideas to help you conserve energy. Let’s start off by looking at a couple of rooms where we use a lot of resources like electricity and water.
In the Kitchen
- Using a microwave instead of the stove to warm up or defrost small amounts of food, will save energy. Microwave ovens use around 50 percent less energy than conventional ovens do. For large meals, however, the stove is usually more efficient. You can also save money on air conditioning in the summer by using a microwave which generates less heat in the kitchen.
- Don’t keep the refrigerator door open any longer than you need to and make sure the door closes securely.
- Sometimes we have a second fridge to keep drinks cold and often they are older. Old refrigerators are real energy hogs! Replace it if you don’t need it.
One large refrigerator is cheaper to run than two smaller ones.
Some specifics about the Fridge
- The refrigerator should not to be installed in areas where temperature is relatively high or where there isn’t proper ventilation to carry away the heat from the condenser coils.
- Periodically clean the freezer
Chose your refrigerator based on the right size, type and features depending upon your requirement (and not according to what our neighbors/relatives/friends possess).
- Note that as usual any additional comfort feature may consume more power and therefore more running cost.
- Make sure you ask for the energy consumption figure for different models before finally making a decision.
- Make sure you set it at the right temperature and not too cold as this will use more energy.
- Try not to frequently open and close the door; proper planning would help in this
- Cover your cooked meals when you put them in the refrigerator
In the Bathroom
- Wasting water wastes electricity. Why? Because the biggest use of electricity in most cities is for pumping and supplying water.
- About 75 percent of the water we use in our homes is used in the bathroom. A leaky toilet can waste more than 40000 liters of water a year. If you have a high flush toilet, you use about 15 liters to 25 liters of water with every flush!
- Another simple way to save water and energy is to take shorter showers. You’ll use less hot water and water heaters account for nearly 1/4 of your home’s energy use.
Think about what you and your family buy
- It is best if you buy things that can be used over and over instead of buying disposable items that are used once and then thrown away. You will save precious natural resources this way and you’ll also save the energy used to make them. You’ll also reduce the amount of landfill space needed when they are thrown away.
- Those same savings happen when you buy things of quality that will last, instead of breaking the first or second time you use them. Well-made items may cost a little more to begin with, but they will save you money because they last for a long time, before you have to replace them.
- When your family goes shopping, think about taking bags with you to reduce wastage of plastic carry bags.
- Pick a spot in your house to store bags that you get from the grocery store. These bags can be used to carry things to friends’ houses or for trash linings.
We’ll look at some more ideas next time.