FALL & WINTER ENERGY TIPS

Today I received some energy tips from my local electric company (NSTAR) for fall and winter energy saving. The energy saving tips include the following:

1. Keep your south side curtains and shades open during the day for solar heating.

2. Make sure your windows are locked for a tighter seal to help prevent drafts.

3. Here is a suggestion I had never heard of before; "Place a sheet of aluminum foil between the radiator and wall to reflect heat back into the room."

4. Make sure your radiators and heat vents are free from furniture and/or drapes.

5. For every degree you lower your thermostat you save about two percent off your heating cost so try to set the temperature no higher than 68 degrees during the day when you are home and lower the temperature when you are not home and at night

With "Old Man Winter" getting ready to knock on every one's door; it is important to try to make your home as efficient as possible to help lower your winter heating bills.

"FREE ENERGY AUDIT FOR HOME"

It is a good idea to check with your local energy company supplier as many utility companies offer a free energy audit for your home or business. While not much in this world is really free; there is no extra cost for the energy audit as each energy consumer helps pay for the cost of the energy audits through their monthly energy bill.

Generally an energy audit looks for ways to help the homeowner make their home more energy efficient by taking steps to help reduce the amount of energy consumed in the home. For example, replacing incandescent light bulbs with florescent light bulbs will help reduce your electric light energy used and help you save on your electric bill. An analysis is also generally done of the amount of insulation found in the attic, basement, and walls to see if you could benefit from increasing the insulation level to reduce your heating costs in the winter and cooling costs in the summer. If you have an old refrigerator, incentives are given to replace their refrigerator with an energy efficient refrigerator. The type of windows are analyzed with proposals given for window replacement if you have older inefficient types of windows. Searching for air leaks and draft spots in the home are also noted along with suggestions on how to correct these problem areas.

Many of the suggestions generated from an energy audit have proposals with attractive financing and rebates available along with potential for qualifying for state and or federal governmental incentives to make your home more energy efficient. Estimates can be obtained for solar installation at your home for example.

In summary, it should be worth your time to contact your local utility company and make arrangements for an energy audit for your home. You can not only save energy and money but also have a more comfortable home after you make the necessary energy efficiency upgrades.

Grocery Shopping Tips

I can't claim to be an expert on how to save money while grocery shopping but I thought I would pass along an observation or two of some things to consider when you are filling up your grocery cart.

First of all you might want to consider store brand items such as ketchup, salsa, and steak sauce over the more famous advertised brands as they are lower in price but are often processed at the same site as the more expensive national brands. Also generic towels and toilet paper usually provide the same utility as the advertised national brands at a lower cost.

Another thing I consider when shopping for meat products are the "manager's price reduction" stickers on items such as steak,pork, or chicken. For example the store coupon may say $2.00 off or $3.00 off the price of the meat product. Of course you should inspect the item visually to make sure it looks fine but depending on how many people you have to feed with the meat item the less the meat item weighs as long as the amount meets your needs; the greater the per pound discount you will receive from a fixed amount store coupon so the lower your per pound cost for this item.

Of course you should be on the alert for in store sale items and also clip coupons from the newspaper or print them from web sites on the Internet to reduce your grocery bills.

MAKING SEA SALT

If you live near a body of salt water you should consider making your own sea salt. I have started making sea salt this summer. It is quite an easy process. All you need to do is gather some salt water and then let the sun evaporate the water which leaves sea salt crystals. Sea salt is better than regular table salt as it has more minerals.

One thing I also do is heat up the salt water if I am already baking something in the oven such as potatoes. I don't use any electric energy except when I am already cooking something else. I also put a pot full of salt water if I am using my gas grill to cook steaks or hamburgers. I also put a pot of sea salt on the stove after I have cooked something like popcorn or spaghetti and have already turned off the electric power from the stove as this way the residual heat helps evaporate the water.

ea salt has a more intense flavor than regular salt. So, if you are going swimming some time in the ocean; bring some salt water home with you. There is approximately three percent salt in salt water and the results are not immediate but you may find this a fun thing to do to make your own salt.

"TREASURE CHEST"

In Harwich, Massachusetts on Cape

Cod there is a recycling center for usable household items next to the Town Dump known as the "Treasure Chest". This steel building is very popular and open year round. Clothing, kitchen ware, books, records, Christmas items, bicycles, furniture, picture frames, golf equipment, glassware, along with select garden and building supplies are some of the items found at the "Treasure Chest" which is staffed by local volunteers and open Friday through Monday during the Summer season and Saturday and Sunday during the off season.

Recycling centers such as the "Treasure Chest" keep fewer items from being dumped at the land fill and give local residents a chance to pick up and drop off usable items to extend the life of these usable goods. There is also a steel storage container on site that they fill with surplus books which are shipped overseas.

Your town should consider a recycling center like the "Treasure Chest" if your town does not currently have a recycling center.

A FULL DISHWASHER BEATS A HAND WASHED DISH

I have recently read that using your energy star dishwasher with a full load of dishes saves energy and water compared with washing the same amount of dishes by hand.

So, let your dishwasher do its job and benefit from the time, water, and energy saved.

CLAM SHELL DRIVEWAY

Last Saturday I purchased a dozen little neck clams from George's Fish Market on Route 28 in Harwichport, Mass on Cape Cod. After cooking up the clams I throw the clam shells on a small portion of my stone covered driveway by my enclosed porch as shown in the picture on the left. I later crush up the shells by stepping on them. I have joked with the people at the fish market when purchasing the little neck clams that I am gradually building a crushed shell driveway a dozen clam shells at a time.

At a cost of $4.80 per dozen this driveway area will be quite expensive and take many years to complete as I generally purchase a dozen clams at most once a week. However, I think it is a good idea to use the clam shells in this manner instead of just throwing them into the garbage.

Small steps such as this can add up if enough people do the same thing and reduce the amount of trash that they generate day to day.

CARDBOARD AND PAPER RECYCLING

As shown in the photo on the left and the picture below; cardboard, office and computer paper can be compressed and recycled.

CARDBOARD AND COMPUTER AND OFFICE PAPER RECYCLING

At the town of Dennis transfer station on Cape Cod they have a recycling area where you can recycle cardboard,computer paper and office paper. As shown in the picture on the left and on the picture above this post; the recycled material is compressed and later transported to a recycling center.

Does your area have this type of recycling service? If not, you might want to investigate adding this to your recycling center.

PAY BY COMPUTER

It is a good idea to sign up by computer to pay some of your recurring monthly bills such as your heat, electric, cable television or satellite, credit card, and telephone bills. This action reduces the amount of stamps you have to buy as well as cutting down on the amount of paper and mail that you have to store in your home or throw in the garbage. With the advent of the computer you can always look up account information online and print a hard copy of any information that you need.

This action can reduce the amount of car miles you need to drive to bring mail to the post office or utility office as well as saving your time.

In addition to paying your bills online it is also a good idea to consider signing up to receive stock security annual reports online and to vote your shares for annual and special meetings online instead of receiving all of this information through the mail.

Small steps like these can multiply into a large amount of energy savings when multiplied by the actions of millions of people throughout the country.

LEAVE THE DRIVING TO THEM

When possible it is a good idea to use public transportation and motor coach travel to get to your destination. For example, motorcoach travel currently provides 184 passenger miles per gallon with each motorcoach having the potential of removing 55 cars from the highway. Traveling by motorcoach reduces fuel consumption,emissions and traffic congestion. In addition, taking a motorcoach reduces the mileage on your person car and the wear and tear these miles would have produced on your tires, engine oil, etc. With the high cost of gasoline particularly last year where the U.S. Internal Revenue Service estimated a cost of 58.5 cents per mile after June 30th; taking a motorcoach is often a cheaper form of transportation which can often reduce your individual highway tolls and parking fees on many trips.

You can also read, sleep,look out the window, use your personal laptop computer and talk with your friends without having to concentrate on the road ahead. So, leave the driving to them when you take a motorcoach instead of your personal car.

CEREAL INNER LINING

The inner lining of your cereal box can be re-used for many things such as storing leftovers in your refrigerator or as a bag to store almost any items around your house.

You paid for the cereal, you might as well re-use the bag inside the cereal box.

DRINK ORANGE JUICE SAVE RAINFOREST

Tropicana orange juice has a promotion together with Cool Earth where they aim to save thousands of acres of rainforest. This promotion ends 12/31/09. For every code you enter they will preserve 100 square feet of rainforest. I have no involvement personally with the Tropicana company, however, if you drink this brand of orange juice or find it on sale; it makes sense to me to take the time to enter the code on the carton and do your part to help preserve the endangered rainforest.

OUTDOOR SHOWER

I live on Cape Cod fairly near the ocean. A common sight on many Cape Cod homes is an outdoor shower generally on the side or back of the dwelling.

It is a good idea to use the outdoor shower if you have one when the weather is warm enough compared with using the shower in your bathroom. The outdoor shower water doesn't enter your septic or sewer system. Also, outdoor showers don't require bathroom lights or exhaust fans.

Outdoor showers reduce the amount of sand tracked through your home if you have just returned from the beach.

For these reasons you use less energy with an outdoor shower. Plus sometimes if the sun is shining while you are taking your outdoor shower it appears like you are taking a shower in a rainbow as the sunlight hits the shower water and refracts this light in to many colors.

LOWER FLOW SHOWER HEADS

It is a good idea to install shower heads that restrict the amount of water that flows through the shower head but at the same time gives you good water pressure. Many inexpensive shower heads, such as the one shown in the picture on the left, also have a water control adjustment so that you can shut the water off while you are putting shampoo in your hair for example, and then turn the shower head back on to rinse the shampoo from your hair.

A lot of energy conservation and water conservation comes from just using your head and not standing under the shower forever. If you cut down on your average shower time you will conserve both water and energy.

So be smart, use a flow restricted shower head and also use your real head to reduce water and energy consumption while taking a shower.

FREE ELECTRIC ENERGY SAVING IDEAS

It sounds so simple because it is. If you or no one else is in a room in your house; turn off the lights. There is probably no such thing as "monsters or boogie men" so there is no need to keep an unoccupied room with the lights on. Even if there were "monsters" it is doubtful that they are afraid of the light.

The same advise for exterior lights. There is no need to keep outside lights on forever unless you live in a crime riddled slum. Get some solar lamps to light your walkway or motion sensitive lights that turn on when you need them and turn off the rest of the night.

It is a good idea to set your computer to the "energy saver mode" so that your monitor isn't using as much energy when you aren't using it. Remember to shut your computer off at night when you are finished.

Shut off your bathroom and kitchen fans as these can blow heated air outside.

I have read that electric appliances such as toasters,battery chargers,printers,televisions, and compact disk players can use up to five percent of your total energy use through stand by energy consumption even when they are not in use. It is a good idea to unplug these items when you aren't using them. Many people use power strips to plug in their appliances and then just turn off the power strip at night.

All these small steps can add up over time to significant electric energy savings. Remember that the more energy you save, the less you pay, leaving you with more money for other things.

A "GOOD DRAFT DODGER"

It is a good idea to eliminate drafts coming into your home to save on your heating bills in the winter and air conditioning bills during the summer. Electric wall sockets on exterior walls of your home should be insulated with inexpensive and easy to install insulation as shown on the photo on the left. This insulation should take you less than a minute to unscrew the wall socket cover, install the insulation and reattach the cover thus reducing the drafts from the outside air. It is also a good idea to make sure your windows are locked to have a tighter seal during the winter months to reduce heat loss. These two small steps can help make your home more energy efficient and reduce your heating bills. The wall socket insulators should be available at your local hardware store or building supply store.

So "dodge that draft and save some cash".

COOKING CONSERVATION THOUGHTS

Every little bit of energy efficiency helps. In the kitchen I do a couple of things that help with energy use that are admittedly hard to quantify but to me can't hurt. The two energy tips can be used during "heating season" when every bit of energy used for home heating is an expense.

The first energy tip is to keep the oven door slightly open after you have finished cooking a meal in the oven so that the heat generated by cooking your meal can enter the interior air of your home. This small step can help heat up the interior air of your home. It is important that if you have small children in your home that you don't keep the oven door wide open as you don't want anyone to burn themselves .

Another energy conservation thought for the kitchen during the winter heating season is to let the boiling water heated on your stove top sit on the stove after you have cooked your vegetables, spaghetti, etc. instead of immediately draining this water down your kitchen sink. This action will allow the heated water energy to dissipate throughout your kitchen and slightly heat up the interior air in your home.

These small actions won't solve your heating costs but they can't hurt and are a more efficient way of using energy already used in preparing your meals.

FLORESCENT FOR NOW LED LATER

The incandescent light bulb is waning in energy efficiency, popularity, and cost effectiveness. Many countries and individual states are considering banning the sale of incandescent light bulbs in the near future. While one can debate whether a governmental authority should get involved in making a decision one restricting the use of incandescent light bulbs; one cannot debate that the compact florescent light bulb uses less energy. A great percentage of the electric power used with an incandescent light bulb is expended on heating up the light bulb compared with the amount of light generated from this type of bulb.

The compact florescent light bulb is longer lasting than an incandescent light bulb, uses less energy and is cooler to the touch. One can debate the quality of light offered by these two types of light bulbs; however from an energy efficiency standpoint the compact florescent bulb is the clear winner.

The next evolution in lighting will be the LED (Light Emitting Diode) bulb. Currently many people use LED Christmas tree lights. The LED technology uses even less energy than the incandescent and florescent light bulbs and last far longer than either of these types of lighting. Currently one of the major drawbacks to the LED lighting is the cost of the LED bulbs. As the production of LED light bulbs increases the costs should start to decrease.

RECYCLE CANS AND BOTTLES

It is important to recycle your aluminum soda and beer cans. It takes far less energy to recycle an aluminum can into a new can than it does to make a brand new aluminum can.

Plastic and glass bottles should also be recycled. In addition to saving energy many states have a deposit on these bottles and cans. By redeeming these bottles and cans you can pick up some "pocket change". Also, if you are walking down your neighborhood street; pick up that stray can or bottle and reward yourself with the deposit as well as reducing the amount of roadside litter.

I read recently that a state representative in Connecticut is trying to expand their deposit laws to include deposits on water bottles and juices. Currently water, orange juice, and ice tea drinks are exempt from redemption deposits. To me it doesn't make much sense that the deposit regulations are dependent on the type of liquid found in the container. As the liquids are consumed and not recycled; it is the container that should be recycled to save energy and also reduce the amount of waste in dumps and landfills.

If you agree with the premise that the recycling laws should be expanded; contact your local elected representatives, express your opinion and encourage them to initiate legislation.

SOUTH SIDE WINDOWS

During the winter season if you live in a temperate area of the world; it is important to open the shades,drapes, blinds, and any other window treatment on sunny days to allow for passive solar light and heating on south facing windows. This solar warming and lighting is "free heating and lighting" and contributes no emissions to the environment.

After the sun sets it is then a good idea to shut the window shades, etc. to retain the passive heat generated from the sunny day.

When planning to build a new home or addition; it is a good idea to consider siting the home with as much southern exposure as the property will allow and plan window exposure to create as much potential passive solar energy as you can.

"IT'S IN THE BAG"

As the "bag" says, You can make a difference. Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.

Re-usable shopping bags like this one can cut down on the number of paper and plastic bags used each year. Some grocery stores even give you a small credit for bringing your own re-usable bag. These bags generally cost around a dollar.

"Metal Bottle"

I received a metal bottle for Christmas from my brother Scott and his wife. This bottle has an advantage over plastic water bottles as it is more durable and holds the coldness of water and liquids better than plastic.

Also by using a metal water bottle you lessen the amount of plastic water bottles used. Plastics are made from petroleum.

Re-using a metal water bottle seems to be a more environmentaly friendly way to carry water.

"LIGHTEN UP YOUR CAR"

I read recently that for every 100 pounds less that a car weighs that you can increase your gas mileage by one mile per gallon. Short of losing 100 pounds of body weight yourself; you can increase your gas mileage slightly by removing unneeded items such as stray papers, cans, clothing, or whatever else you have in your car such as a set of golf clubs, bowling ball among other things.

Basically, any unneeded item in your car adds to your car weight and should be removed for greater mileage efficiency. Little things add up. Do your part and shed some pounds by losing some weight and/or lightening the weight in your car. Plus, your car will look neater with less excess things in it.

TURN OFF THE WATER WHILE BRUSHING YOUR TEETH

Little things add up. I have noticed that many people keep the bathroom sink water running while brushing their teeth. The proper way to brush your teeth is to wet your toothbrush prior to brushing and then rinse your mouth and toothbrush after you are finished brushing your teeth.

There is a finite amount of usable fresh water on this planet and even small tips like this can make a difference in water conservation.

NEW BLOG FOR THE NEW YEAR

We live on a finite planet where the actions of one can affect the lives of all.

The intent of this blog is to pursue not only
thoughts on how to protect planet Earth through individual actions that we all can do but also how the conserve time, money, and health through a more efficient lifestyle.

We are all in this together.