Archive for the ‘Living Green’ Category

Continuing our search for energy saving tips…

If you're not using it - turn it off

Last month we discussed tips to cut your energy bill by checking your home’s outer shell and furnace system.

This month we’ll look at tips for saving on home energy costs through our lighting and appliances.

The How-To of Saving…

Approximately a quarter of every hydro electric bill goes to your lighting and appliances.

To decrease this amount try implementing some or all of the following strategies:

• Compact fluorescent bulbs are more energy efficient than the incandescent version

• Make sure to turn off all lights, stereo, TV, and radios not in use—even if you’re only leaving the room for a few minutes

• Invest in a power bar with an on/off switch that you can use for all your various chargers—simply switch the bar off when the chargers are not in use—employing this one simple step could save you as much as 6% of your monthly bill

• Though turning off the computer every time you’ve finished using it is not always practical—turning off the monitor is a simple solution that makes a good second best

• Refrain from using your microwave to thaw frozen meat—try remembering to take the meat out the night before or the morning of—if you forget—place the meat in a water tight bag and immerse in warm water—this works quite well in speeding up the thawing process

• Consider investing in a set of “Waterless Cookware” – not only will your food taste better and be healthier for you, it could save you as much as 10% on your monthly electrical bills

• Going away for awhile? Lower the thermostat by as much as 7 degrees

The Fridge…

• Reduce the thermostat in your fridge—this appliance alone constitutes 20% of your household electrical consumption

• Keep your fridge at least 3/4 full for maximum efficiency

• Don’t put hot/warm food in the fridge—cooling the food down consumes a lot of power

• Defrost your freezer regularly—as the ice builds up causes it to use more electricity

The Hot Water Tank…

• Reduce the temperature of your hot water heater—140°C is sufficient for washing dishes and clothes—save even more by washing your clothes in the cold water

• Invest in a water heater jacket which can save you an additional $5-12 per month—it’ll pay for itself in about 6 months

• Insulate hot water pipes wherever they are visible—your water will stay hotter longer

The Washer & Dryer…

• Wash your clothes in cold water—the “Tide” commercials aren’t lying—you can save as much as 90% of your washing machine’s electrical consumption if you don’t use hot water

• Use your dryer for consecutive loads—the build up heat means less energy spent

One Step at a Time…

Try implementing just one new energy-saving strategy each week or even month.

Not only will you save money but you’ll be saving your children’s future home as well.

All it takes is one small step at a time.

Where and how you can save…

Over the next several months we’re going to look at areas of your home where with some minor changes (and occasionally major changes) we can save money and do our part for conservation and ‘greener living’.

We’ll start with a brief overview of the thing we can do—then in the months following we’ll go into more detail.

Understanding your electrical bill

Have you ever wondered exactly how your energy bill breaks down? What are your biggest energy eaters? What changes can you make to bring down your costs?

According to CREEDAC (Canadian Residential Energy End-use Data and Analysis Centre):

• The largest portion of your bill goes to space heating—a whopping 58.5%

• Lighting and appliances—16.1%

• Water heating—14.4%

• Air Conditioning—6%

• Refrigeration—5%

Knowing this it’s easy to see that your first moving in keeping your electrical consumption down should be to look at your space heating.

Keeping it warm in winter and cool in summer…

• Re-insulating the ceiling and possibly the outer walls, can save as much as 30% on heating expenses—blown-in cellulose insulation is not only a “green” product but has a higher R-rating and outperforms many common insulation products.

• Repair leaks and damages all over your house—make sure doorframes, windows, sills and joint don’t let cold air enter the house—if you find any leaks use an appropriate sealant to seal them.

• If you find leaks around exterior doors, garage doors or opening windows it’s time to replace the weather stripping.

Cutting your electrical bills

Making some changes inside and on the outside of your home can also make a difference in the size of your electrical bills:

• Planting some deciduous—leafy—trees around the house will help cool down the area during the summer—saving you on you’re A/C bills:

• Next time you re-shingle your roof consider using light colored roof shingles to help keep temperatures down in the attic

• If you have painted siding pick on light colors to help deflect the heat

• Sealing all leaks around your home will ensure that heated or cooled air stays inside

• Make sure your windows are all double-paned at the minimum—use a plastic coating during winter for any windows that need extra insulation

• Perform regular maintenance checks on your furnace to keep it running efficiently. A clean air filter will ensure you get efficient air recycling of dust-free, clean air

• Leaking ducts will make your heating system work 30% more, increasing your power usage

• Keep the doors closed to any unheated portions of your home—add insulation to walls and doors if you can to keep the cold away from the rest of your home

• Close your curtains at night—it really does make a difference

A good reminder…

Though some of these tips may seem like no-brainers they’re a good reminder, since more often than not our lives are so busy that simple tricks and techniques, like these, get forgotten.

Making these changes will impact not only your pocket book but the quality of all our futures.

Isn’t it about time we all do our part in making it a brighter, “greener” future? Especially when it can be so simple?

Insulation

Heat loss through the ceiling and walls in your home could be very large if the insulation levels are less than the recommended minimum.

Given today’s energy prices (and future prices that will probably be higher), the level of insulation might be inadequate, especially if you have an older home.

If the attic hatch is located above a heated/cooled area, check to see that it’s at least as heavily insulated as the attic, is weather stripped, and closes tightly.

In the attic, determine whether openings for items such as pipes, ductwork, and chimneys are sealed. Seal any gaps with an expanding foam caulk or some other permanent sealant.

While you’re inspecting the attic, check to see if there is a vapor barrier under the attic insulation. It might be tarpaper, Kraft paper attached to fiberglass batts, or a plastic sheet.

If there doesn’t appear to be a vapor barrier, you might consider painting the interior ceilings with a vapor barrier paint. This will reduce the amount of water vapor that can pass through the ceiling.

Large amounts of moisture can reduce the effectiveness of insulation and promote structural damage.

Make sure that the attic vents are not blocked by insulation. You also should seal any electrical boxes in the ceiling with flexible caulk (from the living room side or attic side) and cover the entire attic floor with at least the current recommended amount of insulation—R49 here in Canada.

Checking a wall’s insulation level is more difficult. Select an exterior wall and turn off the circuit breaker or unscrew the fuse for any outlets in the wall.

Be sure to test the outlets to make certain that they are not “hot.” Check the outlet by plugging in a functioning lamp or portable radio.

Once you are sure your outlets are not getting any electricity, remove the cover plate from one of the outlets and gently probe into the wall with a thin, long stick or screwdriver. If you encounter a slight resistance, you have some insulation there.

You could also make a small hole in a closet, behind a couch, or in some other unobtrusive place to see what, if anything, the wall cavity is filled with.

Ideally, the wall cavity should be totally filled with some form of insulation material. Unfortunately, this method cannot tell you if the entire wall is insulated, or if the insulation has settled.

If your basement is unheated, determine whether there’s insulation under the living area flooring.

In most areas of the country, an R-value of 25 is the recommended minimum level of insulation. The insulation at the top of the foundation wall and first floor perimeter should have an R-value of 20 or greater.

If the basement is heated, the foundation walls should be insulated to at least R-20. Your water heater, hot water pipes, and furnace ducts should all be insulated. For more information, see our insulation section.

Heating/Cooling Equipment

Inspect heating and cooling equipment annually, or as recommended by the manufacturer.

If you have a forced-air furnace, check your filters and replace them as needed. Generally, you should change them about once every month or two, especially during periods of high usage. Have a professional check and clean your equipment once a year.

If the unit is more than 15 years old, you should consider replacing your system with one of the newer, energy-efficient units. A new unit would greatly reduce your energy consumption.

Check your ductwork for dirt streaks, especially near seams. These indicate air leaks, and they should be sealed with a duct mastic.

Insulate any ducts or pipes that travel through unheated spaces. An insulation R-Value of 6 is the recommended minimum.

Lighting

Energy for lighting accounts for about 10% of your electric bill. Examine the wattage size of the light bulbs in your house. You may have 100-watt (or larger) bulbs where 60 or 75 watts would do.

You should also consider compact fluorescent lamps for areas where lights are on for hours at a time.

Adapted from Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy

www.energysavers.gov

Conducting a home energy audit isn’t hard. With a simple but diligent walk-through, you can spot many problems in any type of house.

When assessing your home, keep a checklist of areas you’ve inspected and problems you find. This list will help you prioritize your energy efficiency upgrades.

Locating Air Leaks

First, make a list of obvious air leaks (drafts). The potential energy savings from reducing drafts in your home may range from 5% to 30% per year, and your home is generally much more comfortable afterward.

Check for indoor air leaks, such as gaps along the baseboard or the edge of the flooring and at junctures of the walls and ceiling.

Check to see if air is flowing through these places:

• Electrical outlets

• Switch plates

• Window frames

• Baseboards

• Weather stripping around doors

• Fireplace dampers

• Attic hatches

• Wall or window-mounted air conditioners

Also look for gaps around pipes and wires, electrical outlets, foundation seals, and mail slots.

Check to see if the caulking and weather stripping are applied properly, leaving no gaps or cracks, and are in good condition.

Inspect windows and doors for air leaks. See if you can rattle them, since movement means possible air leaks.

If you can see daylight around a door or window frame, then you’ve got a leak. You can usually seal these leaks by caulking or weather stripping them.

Check storm windows to see if they fit and aren’t broken. You may also wish to consider replacing old windows and doors with newer, high-performance ones.

If new factory-made doors or windows are too costly, you can install low-cost plastic sheets over the windows.

If you are having difficulty locating leaks, you may want to conduct a basic building pressurization test:

• First, close all exterior doors, windows, and fireplace flues.

• Turn off all combustion appliances such as gas burning furnaces and water heaters.

• Then turn on all exhaust fans (generally located in the kitchen and bathrooms) or use a large window fan to suck the air out of the rooms.

This test increases infiltration through cracks and leaks, making them easier to detect. You can use incense sticks or your damp hand to locate these leaks.

If you use incense sticks, moving air will cause the smoke to waver, and if you use your damp hand, any drafts will feel cool to your hand.

On the outside of your house, inspect all areas where two different building materials meet, including:

• All exterior corners

• Where siding and chimneys meet

• Areas where the foundation and the bottom of exterior brick or siding meet

You should plug and caulk holes or penetrations for faucets, pipes, electric outlets, and wiring.

Look for cracks and holes in the mortar, foundation, and siding, and seal them with the appropriate material.

Check the exterior caulking around doors and windows, and see whether exterior storm doors and primary doors seal tightly.

When sealing any home, you must always be aware of the danger of indoor air pollution and combustion appliance “backdrafts.”

Backdrafting is when the various combustion appliances and exhaust fans in the home compete for air. An exhaust fan may pull the combustion gases back into the living space. This can obviously create a very dangerous and unhealthy situation in the home.

In homes where a fuel is burned (i.e., natural gas, fuel oil, propane, or wood) for heating, be certain the appliance has an adequate air supply.

Generally, one square inch of vent opening is required for each 1,000 Btu of appliance input heat. When in doubt, contact your local utility company or energy professional.

Adapted from Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy

www.energysavers.gov

Doing our part….

Over the next 12 months we’ll be exploring ways to make your home increasingly “green” or environmentally friendly… while saving you money.

Some of the tips can be implemented for free, some very inexpensively, and others at a greater cost–but when they’re completed they’ll definitely have an impact on the world around you and your pocketbook.

Carbon footprint? Some definitions…

We’ve all heard the catch phrases—but what do they really mean?

• Greenhouse gases—chemical compounds in the atmosphere that trap heat there. These gases are naturally present in the atmosphere in small quantities.

• Carbon footprint—is a measure of the impact our daily activities have on the environment in terms of greenhouse gases produced by this activity. Our carbon footprint is measured in units of carbon dioxide (Co2).

• Green living—your efforts to lead a more sustainable lifestyle.

So what does this mean for you?

Now you know the basic meaning of these words, but what do they mean for you, in practical terms?

• What actions should you take?

• What can you do that won’t hurt already strained finances?

• What can you do that won’t take of lot of time?

Some practical tips…

Minimizing your Carbon Footprint–

Electricity is one of the biggest culprits for CO2 emissions. Following is a list of simple no cost changes you can implement immediately:

• If you’re not using it turn it off—lights, TV, DVD player, stereo, computer, etc.

• Turn down your heat by even just a degree or two

• Use an electronic thermostat—reducing your thermostat by a constant 1 degree can save you up to 10% on your heating bills—consider reducing the temperature even more when you’re not home.

• Unplug any chargers that are not presently being used as they draw energy even when they’re not being used.

• Defrost freezers regularly—they’ll use less energy that way.

• Switch to energy saving light bulbs (CFL’s)—this is one of the easiest ways to cut down on your energy consumption and save you money.

More tips for Green Living

Taking steps to save energy can make a real difference to the environment not to mention your bank account:

• Make sure your dishwasher and washing machine are full before running a load

• Improve your insulation—nearly half of the heat in your home is lost through poorly insulated walls and roof

• Buy Energy Efficient appliances—choose Energy Star appliances as they help protect our environment through more efficient energy use

• Walk rather than drive whenever possible

Today we’ve only touched lightly on a few of the many ways you can cut back on your home energy consumption. Over the coming months we’ll take the time to go into greater detail.

With a bit of effort you’ll not only save yourself a lot of money, but our environment as well.

What could be better than that?