Tip$ to $ave Energy at Home and on the Road –

A Compendium

Did you know that the average household pays about $1500 per year for utility bills?  Depending on how efficient you are to start with and how much you're willing to do to be more efficient, you can reduce this amount by 10-90%.  Link to the following websites for more complete information: www.rmi.org; www.eere.energy.gov; http://www.aceee.org/consumerguide/ . 

On the road, you can $ave energy too and help make our nation and our economy more secure!  About 2/3 of our petroleum (much of it imported from nations who are unfriendly to us) is used for transportation.  Looked at another way, about 97% of our transportation is powered by petroleum.   What you $ave on the road, can help save us all.

The Ea$iest $aving$ -

Free things you can do yourself to develop good energy habit$ at home and on the road

• Turn down water heater thermostat to 120°F.
• Turn off lights when leaving a room.
• Set heating thermostats to 68°F in winter; turn thermostats down to 62°F when you go to bed or when you're away. (Programmable thermostats do this automatically—see below).
• Use energy-saving settings on all your appliances - washing machines, clothes dryers, dishwashers, and refrigerators. Keep in mind that front loading washers use 1/3 water/sewer capacity and ¼ the detergent and front loading dryers use ½ the drying time/cost.
• Use water wisely, hot or cold, inside or outside your home.
• Clean your refrigerator's condenser coils every two months.
• Wash only full loads of dishes and clothes
• Air-dry your clothes and dishes.
• Repair leaky faucets and toilets (5 percent of water "use" is leakage).
• Take short showers instead of a bath
• Close drapes after sunset in the winter.
• Turn off your computer and monitor when not in use
• Rake leaves instead of using a leaf blower
• Unplug home electronics, such as TVs and DVD players, or use power strips and turn the power strips off when the equipment is not in use (TVs and DVDs in standby mode still use several watts of power).
• Drive sensibly. Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) wastes gasoline.
• Lighten your load by clearing your car of extra weight.
• Remove roof racks or carriers if not used frequently. A roof rack or carrier provides additional cargo space and may allow you to buy a smaller car. However, a loaded roof rack can decrease your fuel economy by 5%.
• Properly inflate tires.
• Check your oil; using the wrong grade of oil can reduce mileage by 1% to 2%. 
• Avoid high speeds. Each 5 mph you drive over 60 mph is like paying $0.10 more per gallon of gas.
• When you use overdrive gearing, your car's engine speed goes down. This saves gas and reduces wear.
• Use air conditioning only when necessary
• Check into carpooling and public transit to cut mileage and car maintenance costs.  Try www.Phillycarshare.com .  Other major cities have car sharing programs as well.
• Idling gets you 0 miles per gallon. The best way to warm up a vehicle is to drive it. No more than 30 seconds of idling on winter days is needed. Anything more simply wastes fuel and increases emissions.
• Combine errands into one trip. Several short trips, each one taken from a cold start, can use twice as much fuel as one trip covering the same distance when the engine is warm.

Inexpensive things you can do yourself that will pay you back in less than a year
 

• Install a water-saving 2.5-gallon-per-minute showerhead. 
• Install water-efficient faucet heads for your kitchen and bathroom sinks.  
• Install a programmable thermostat. 
• In the attic and basement, plug the air leaks a cat could crawl through.
• Replace and reputty broken window panes.
• Clean or change the air filter monthly on your warm-air heating system during winter and on air conditioning units in the summer. 
• Insulate first 4’ of piping on each side of water heater.
• Insulate the first three feet of hot and inlet cold water pipes. 
• Install compact fluorescent light bulbs in the five fixtures you use the most.
• Replace clogged air filters in your car. Clean air filters can improve gas mileage by as much as 10%.
• Get your car aligned. Properly inflated and aligned tires can improve gas mileage by up to 3%.
• Install gaskets on all electric outlets and switches

More Expensive, with one to three year payback

• Get a comprehensive energy audit, including a blower door test, to identify sources of air infiltration.
• Caulk and weatherize all leaks identified by the test. Start with the attic and basement first (especially around plumbing and electrical penetrations, and around the framing that rests on the foundation), then weatherize windows and doors.
• Insulate access hatch/stairs to attic
• Seal and insulate warm-air heating (or cooling) ducts. Add extra 6” blanket over any ducts or AC units in attic
• Have heating and cooling systems tuned up every year.
• Install additional faucet aerators, efficient showerheads, and programmable thermostats.
• Make insulating shades for your windows, or add insulating storm windows.  About one-third of the home's total heat loss usually occurs through windows and doors.
• Insulate hot water pipes in unheated basements or crawlspaces.

A Real Investment, with a payback of three to fifteen years

• Foundation: insulate inside rim joist and down the foundation wall to below frostline to at least R-19 in cold climates and to R-11 or better in moderate climates. Remember to caulk first.
• Basement: Insulate the inside of basement walls/crawl space.  If heated,  install to R-19 or more above grade and to R-11 or more below grade.
• Attic: increase attic insulation to R-50 in cold climates, R-38 in milder climates, and R-30 plus a radiant barrier in hot climates.
• Walls: adding wall insulation is more difficult and expensive, but may be cost-effective if your house is uncomfortable.
• Convert to solar water heating, and perhaps also supplementary solar space heating.
• Upgrade your water heater, furnace, boiler, air conditioners, and refrigerator to more efficient models. Newer units are far more efficient. Upgrading is often cost-effective, and definitely so if you need to replace failing units anyway. Also, if you've weatherized and insulated, you'll be able to downsize the heating and cooling system.  Look for the ENERGY STAR^® label on home appliances and products. ENERGY STAR products meet strict efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy.
• Upgrade to superinsulating or at least low-emissivity windows in cold climates, if replacement is needed.
• Replace high-flow toilets with modern water-efficient toilets that use 50–80 percent less water.
• Install awnings or build removable trellises over windows that overheat your home in the summer.
• Plant a shade tree outside your largest west window for summer cooling benefits. Trees should be planted at least 1/3 of ultimate height away from house.  Since this is a many year endeavor, start today!
• For longer-term savings on the road, consider a high-mileage vehicle for your next purchase. See www.fueleconomy.gov for more on buying a fuel-efficient car or truck..