Zap Energy Waste and Save Dollars in Your Home

Americans spend about $500 billion a year for energy--about as much as we spend annually to educate our children. Unfortunately, much of it goes up the smokestacks of power plants, or is wasted in inefficient appliances, lights, motors and vehicles. Fortunately, there's something each of us can do to cut our energy bills and give the planet a bonus, too.

Most importantly, we don't have to do it alone. Many utilities are willing to lend a hand with information and brochures, incentives like rebates and loans, and energy audits of your home. And, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has begun issuing bright yellow EnergyGuide stickers and Energy Star labels to help consumers spot energy-saving products.

How much can you save? As featured in Home Energy Magazine, the Coxon family of San Francisco cut their home electricity use by 65% in only two years. It all started with a $4 rebate from their local utility and a handful of energy-efficient lightbulbs. Today, the Coxons have 26 compact fluorescent bulbs installed, saving about $100 a year from better lighting alone. Though not everyone will achieve such dramatic changes overnight, you can try a few simple ideas, make a couple of short-term purchases, or pick at least one longer-term investment. Here's how:

-- 4 Things You Can Do Today -- to Start Saving Energy

1. Fridge Tuneup: Virtually all refrigerators made in the last 15 years have an energy saver switch inside, usually next to the temperature dial. Make sure it's switched on. If it's off, your fridge is trying to heat its walls and cool its insides at the same time. While you're in there, take your fridge's temperature by leaving an outdoor thermometer inside for about 20 minutes. The freezer should be 0°F to 5°F and the refrigerator should be 34°F to 38°F. Any colder and you're wasting energy--any warmer and you're wasting food by reducing shelf life.

2. The Water Heater Wrap: To find out if your hot water heater is wasting energy, follow this three-point checklist. First, check the tank's thermostat: ideal temperature is 120°F. If the thermostat doesn't read in degrees, use an immersible thermometer (like a cooking or pool thermometer) to measure the hot water temperature at the closest faucet to your hot water tank, and then adjust the thermostat accordingly. Second, if the side of your hot water tank feels warm to the touch, it's probably losing heat to the room. Wrap it with an insulating blanket, made of fiberglass or reflective metal film and available at most hardware stores for about $20. This will cut your energy bills substantially. Third, check the hot water pipe leading out of the tank. If it's bare metal, buy some pipe insulation at the local hardware store, $5 to $10 depending on the size. By wrapping it around the pipe where it leaves the tank, you'll keep your water hotter and cut down on the time you need to wait for hot water when you turn the faucet on.

3. Dryer Full of Hot Air? Heloise was right! Don't forget to clean the lint trap before every load! Forcing a dryer to blow air through lint is like jogging with a snorkel. And, make sure the clothes are spun dry before loading them in the dryer. Baking the moisture out of sopping-wet clothes is hard on your clothes, hard on your energy bills, and hard on the planet.

4.Switch to Energy-Efficient Lightbulbs: Pacific Gas and Electric Company once ran a promotional campaign with the following slogan: "How many lightbulbs does it take to change the world?" A U.C. Berkeley scientist has estimated that if everyone in the U.S. used the most energy-efficient lightbulbs now available, we would save the equivalent of the entire oil resource of Alaska in a decade or two.

Switching off lights while you're not in the room can save 20% to 40% of your total lighting bill. If you're using compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and are going in and out of the room, don't switch them off and on. This makes them burn out quicker. So how many lightbulbs does it take to change your world? Even if your house is already fairly efficient, lighting can easily represent 6% to 20% or more of your electric bill. That can be cut by 60% to 75% through simple, widely available lighting products. The Coxons, for example, changed out so many lightbulbs that they cut their total electricity bill by 25%. (See box, below.)

-- The Long Haul --

Probably the most important investments you can make over the long haul are more efficient appliances and permanently-installed home equipment. The big energy users are your refrigerator, air conditioner, furnace, clothes washer and dryer, and electric hot water heater. In every case, you can find the most efficient models by checking the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) paperback book mentioned at the end of this article. Also look at the yellow label on appliances, which indicate their operating costs compared to similar products.

Refrigerators: Today's refrigerators use less than half the energy of the same-size fridges from the late 1970s. Buying one of the most efficient new fridges can save you $50 to $100 a year in energy bills, while keeping your food fresher and making less noise. New fridges also no longer use chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in the coolant or insulation, which means good news for the ozone layer. While the HCFCs that are replacing CFCs are made with some chlorine, they are a great improvement, according to Ashok Gupta, senior scientist at Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). And, best of all, companies are springing up around the country to recycle old fridges, capturing ozone-depleting chemicals and reusing the metal instead of tossing them in landfills. Many utilities contract with these recyclers, and will pay you for your old, working appliances. The Coxsons replaced their 30-year-old fridge with a Sunfrost--the most energy efficient model available--and saw the savings the very next month on their energy bill.

Furnaces and Air Conditioners: A properly maintained gas furnace can usually heat your home at lower cost than an electric one. If you have no natural gas service and live in a temperate area, consider replacing your air conditioner and furnace with a highly efficient heat pump when one of them fails. Air-conditioner efficiency has improved dramatically in recent years, and new air conditioners do not use CFCs; check the ACEEE guide mentioned below for tips on how to buy a properly sized, efficient model.

Clothes Washers: Front-loading washers (like the kind used in laundromats) tumble the clothes on a horizontal axis through a pool of water rather than filling the entire wash tub. These washers save energy, water and detergent, while getting your clothes cleaner with reduced wear and tear. They also extract more water in the spin cycle, cutting down on drying time. Many European models made for home use are front-loading. Frigidaire manufactures an American model; others should be coming out soon.

Water Heaters: If you've got one of those all-electric homes that developers have been promoting for years, chances are you're paying more for your showers and laundry than you should. In most parts of the country, it's significantly cheaper, and usually better for the environment, to heat water with natural gas. New water heaters have a built-in layer of insulation, making them more efficient than older ones.

A final note: keep an eye out for embodied energy--the energy it took to make something and get it into your hands. Don't burn a gallon of gas in the car just to go buy a gallon of milk at the store, or ride an indoor bike at the gym. Ride your bike to the store and get both errands done for zero fossil fuels. Buy simple, natural products that are made close to home and shipped with minimal packaging. Learn how to maintain and fix expensive purchases locally rather than buying new ones every few years or shipping them across the country to have someone else repair them. Buy recycled or reused items when you can. As dollar and energy savings mount up, you'll also be pleased by how much wear and tear you spare both yourself and the earth.

Chris Calwell, former energy and transportation scientist at NRDC, is a partner in Ecos Consulting, helping businesses to improve energy efficiency and prevent pollution. Chris lives in Durango, CO, in his passive solar home.