We’re considering the purchase of a new computer for family use at home. We currently have an almost 5 year old desktop PC that is showing its age. We’re considering a laptop instead of a desktop primarily for portability, but in my research one of the side benefits I found is that laptops use much [...]
A few years ago, my wife and I remodeled a 40 year old house and in the process I added 24 recessed can lights. The house, built in the late 60’s and with an addition in the early 70’s had very light natural light and not much overhead lighting.
My bright idea was to add a [...]
Here’s one of those little things that may not save a lot of energy each day, but combine 4 -5 of these types of tips and you can make a sizable dent in your energy bill over the course of a year. One of the things we have done is turn off the [...]
Clothes drying is one of the most energy intensive tasks we undertake on a daily basis. Dryers use a tremendous amount of energy, heating not only our clothes but our houses, often during the hottest months of the year.
As a family with two small daughters who love to change clothes numerous times per day, the [...]
Lightbulb wattage that is. Use the lowest wattage bulb that will get the job done in your light fixtures. This isn’t too important in fixtures that aren’t used much. However, in light fixtures that are used often, the energy usage can far outweigh the additional light produced.
For example, we have a light fixture in our [...]
Here’s one that I haven’t implemented yet in my home, but it’s at the top of the list. Install motion sensor light switches in rooms where lights often get left on. I have two young daughters who never turn lights off. At any point during the day, there will be any number of lights [...]
Landscape lighting can make a house look beautiful at night and provide safety. I’ve always enjoyed highlighting a bit of the landscaping at our house by using low voltage lights to cast a soft light. The lighting also provides a bit of safety by lighting up our sidewalk. Visitors won’t be stumbling around in the [...]
Someone once said you can really only improve that which you measure. The thought is that unless you take regular measurements, you won’t have the feedback necessary to make improvements. One of the things we did when we first started making improvements to our energy usage is to track our electricity usage. For a couple [...]
File this one as something you’ve probably heard before, but lighting is a big energy waster in our house. I have two daughters who seem to know how to turn ON every light in the house, but can’t figure out how to turn OFF any lights. My wife and I are guilty of it ourself, [...]
OK, I’m sure you’ve probably heard this one before, but one of the most basic things you can do to save energy is to switch your light bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs. Yes, they are more expensive than regular light bulbs. They will also save you a serious amount of money over the life of [...]