- Turn off computers and other office equipment when they’re not being used, especially overnight and weekends. Cost: Nothing! Savings potential: As much as $44 per year, per computer, depending on what you pay per kilowatt-hour.

- Install an occupancy sensor in hallways, bathrooms and other areas where lights can be left off most of the time. Cost: Between $25 and $80. Savings potential: About $40 per year depending on where the sensor is installed.

- Lower the thermostat on your water heater. Cost: Nothing! Savings potential: About $24 per year, if the setting is reduced by 10 degrees F, and operates at the lowest allowable temperature for normal use.

- Turn off your water heater overnight and on weekends. Cost: Nothing, or $30 if you buy an automatic timer to do it for you. Savings potential: As much as $54 per year depending on how much hot water you use.

- Set back your thermostats at night and on weekends. Cost: Nothing! Savings potential: About $1,800 per year for a 33,000-sq. ft. office building with a thermostat set at 75 degrees F, 24 hours per day during the heating months.

- Close drapes or blinds in warmer months to keep the sunshine from overheating your house. Just do the opposite in the colder months to give your thermostat a break. Cost: Nothing! Savings potential: About $5 per window depending on location and time of year.

- Clean all air filters monthly. Cost: Nothing to clean, and about $2 if you need to replace one. Savings potential: As much as $60 per filter, depending on the size of your HVAC system.

- Check for drafts coming from doors and windows, then caulk and weather-strip them as necessary. Cost: $5 or less. Savings potential: About $2 per fixed draft.

- Adjust your thermostats for colder weather. Simply set them at the lowest temperature allowable that keeps employees and customers comfortable. A setting of 70-75 degrees Fahrenheit (F) is the standard industry recommendation. Cost: Nothing! Savings potential: About $1,000 per year for a small office building open Mon.-Fri., 7am to 7pm.

- Install LED exit signs. They’re 100% longer lasting than conventional exit signs and the most energy efficient of their kind! Cost: About $70 to retrofit. Savings potential: About $24 per year, per sign, not to mention the maintenance savings.

Reprinted from Energy.com, Inc., a beMANY Co.

To keep you thinking along these tracks, consider a recent illustration in the New York Times, provided by BASF to illustrate how energy-efficiency can be brought ‘HOME’.

This is but one example of some of the things to consider, that you might not even have contemplated or considered. As you continue on your own personal journey, to evaluate, upgrade, improve and optimize your home, from an energy perspective and savings some hard-earned cash, putting it back in your pocket, lowering your utility bills, heating and cooling costs, we wish you luck and may different paths of success all help us to get the results we want!

In closing, here are some MORE simple actions you can take to reduce energy costs, improve comfort, and reduce air pollution in your home:

- Control indoor air pressure to help prevent a variety of comfort, safety and health problems.
- Eliminate the need for air leakage through your home’s building envelope by using mechanical ventilation to supply as much fresh filtered air as you want.
- Insulate the walls and attic as much, or more than, recommended for your local climate.
- Seal air leaks in the building’s envelope to block entry of microbes, allergens, toxins, irritants, insects, and cold drafts.
- These actions will make your home a safer shelter if an accident, or a terrorist, releases chemical, biological or radiological substances upwind of your home.
- Use a powered exhaust system on any device that burns fuel indoors.

Homes can be heated conventionally using:

- Natural gas
- Electricity
- Wood

OR unconventional heat sources using:

- Solar
- Ground heat
- Ground water
- Wind generation
- Straw
- Heat pumps

** Note: economic and environmental costs have to be considered in these cases

Here are some more checklist items for you to use and consider as you ‘evaluate’ or inspect your home for energy efficiencies:

- Window shutters
- Use of sunrooms or skylights
- Type of glass used in windows and patio doors
- Thermostat control
- Style of furnace and fireplaces
- Storm windows
- Site orientation and landscaping, land and structure
- Shape of the home (square, L shape, T shape)
- Porches
- Number of levels in the house (main, top, basement)
- Location of largest windows
- Insulation (quality and amount)
- Frequently used rooms grouped together in the same part of the house
- Exposure or orientation of the house on the lot for wind control and exposure to sunlight
- Entry ways with storm doors
- Color of the roof and size of the roof
- Closets on the coldest side of the house
- Ceiling height
- Amount of roof overhang to west and south.
- Air lock

Always ask yourself how each factor that you consider can and will affect the EE (energy efficiency) of YOUR HOME.

You could also consider retrofitting your home for energy efficiency. Consider as priorities potentially:

- Weather stripping
- Ventilation
- Vapor barrier
- The use of plastic, styro-foam, and tinfoil on windows
- Storm doors
- Programmable thermostats
- Low E windows
- Insulation
- Heat exchanger
- Energy-efficient appliances
- Caulking

- Check for and ensure sealed ductwork
- Condition of the roof
- Effective insulation
- Ensure that exterior and interior of the house are without gaps or cracks, holes and crevices
- High-efficiency heating and cooling equipment
- High-performance windows (such as low-E (low emissive) windows)
- Tight construction and outer shell, firm robust, strong and durable structure

As a proud home-owner, do everything in your power to optimize what the market has to offer you, that can assist you in these processes and undertakings to save money and energy, make your home more efficient.

Empower, enable and educate yourself regarding, understanding issues related to energy-efficient housing, issues, concerns, actions, products and pre-cautions to take that will help lower costs, cut utility bills, consumption and waste.

Take your time to explore energy-efficient housing in all its intricacies and complexities and see how you can find practical solutions to some of the challenges and realities, opportunities, obstacles, promise and potential YOUR OWN home and family has to offer, on both smaller and larger scales.

For a home to be deemed ENERGY EFFICIENT use criteria like construction, heating and cooling with reduced energy optimized in mind, for both conventional and traditional, older homes, and newer building wonders and architecturally sound, even zero-energy homes.

You can benefit and take advantages on numerous fronts by making some of these changes, considering some of these options, finding solutions that work for you, your home and your budget. Benefits like cost, comfort, ecology, fuel conservation, and climatic conditions, contribution to the environment and future generations all figure into these decisions (consciously or sub-consciously!)

Sources of energy and fuels and their potential usefulness, applications and contributions to your overall goal of lowering cost, being more energy efficient homes, consider natural gas, propane, gas, electricity, hot water, fossil fuels, wood and coal, even alternative fuel sources like hydroelectric power, solar power, geothermal energy.

ORNL Buildings Technology Center
www.ornl.gov/btc

Building America
www.buildingamerica.gov

Appliances Energy Star
(888) 782-7937
www.energystar.gov

Windows Andersen Windows
(888) 888-7020
www.andersenwindows.com

Cool Roof ATAS International
(800) 468-1441
www.atas.com/dutchseam

Heating and Cooling Lennox Heat Pump HPX19
(800) 953-6669
www.lennox.com

American Geothermal (800) 776-8039
www.amgeo.com

Solar Electric System BP Solar
(866) 277-6527
www.bpsolar.com

Sharp multi-crystalline silicon modules
(800) 237-4277
www.solar.sharpusa.com

Xantrex/Trace Sun Tie inverter
(800) 670-0707
www.xantrex.com

Big Frog Mountain (equipment installers)
(877) 232-1580
www.bigfrogmountain.com

Walls and SIPs Insulspan
(517) 486-4844
www.insulspan.com

FischerSIPS (800) 792-7477
www.fischersips.com

Winter Panel
(802) 254-3435
www.winterpanel.com

Dow Styrofoam T-Mass System
(800) 232-2436
www.t-mass.com

DuPont Tyvek Envelope Weatherization
(800) 448-9835
www.tyvek.com

Water Heating
ECR International WatterSaver
(800) 228-9364
www.ecrinternational.com/
prod_wattersaver.asp

· Energy Star approved dishwashers use 25 per cent less energy than other new models! Here are some other energy-saving tips:
· Always run your dishwasher with a full load. Most of the energy used by a dishwasher is spent heating water, and since you can’t decrease the amount of water used per cycle, filling your machine is more effective than running half-loads.
· Use the air-dry option instead of the heat-dry, rinse-hold and pre-rinse features. If your dishwasher doesn’t have this option, prop the door open after the final rinse cycle to dry your dishes.

Washers and Dryers

Energy Star designated washers are a wise investment for several reasons: They clean clothes using 50 per cent less energy than standard machines; Full-sized Energy Star washers use 72-100 liters of water per load, while their standard counterparts use 160 liters; and Energy Star washers extract more water from clothes during spin cycles, reducing drying time and saving energy and wear-and-tear on your clothes.

Front-loading tumble washers, use an average 104 liters of water per load, while top-loaders use 160 liters. Front-loading machines also use a third less water, a third less heat energy and a third less detergent!

· Clothes washers are more efficient when operated with full loads.
· Wash clothes in cold water – yes, they will still get clean!
· Use environmentally safe detergents and whiteners that are kind to aquatic life and your clothes.

Clothes dryers don’t have Energy Guide labels on them because the energy efficiency of different models are essentially the same. But not all clothes dryers are created equally. Look for clothes dryers with moisture sensors that automatically stop drying when they sense a load is dry enough.

Unplugged

You don’t need to buy new appliances to make a difference. Look around your home. Do you need all those appliances and electrical devices? Do they always need to be plugged in? Once you unplug various items, you may notice how little you actually use them.

Many electrical devices consume power even when switched off, sometimes as much power as when turned on! A large number of electrical products – from air conditioners to VCRs — can’t be completely switched off without unplugging the device. These products draw power 24 hours a day, often without our knowledge. Plug these devices into power-bars, and turn them off when not in use. You can stop the electrical leak!

More efficient appliance tips:

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=products.pr_index
http://www.greenhome.com/learn/energy/Guide.shtml

To view the top-rated appliances for 2002-2003 visit: http://www.aceee.org/consumerguide/mostenef.htm

For energy-smart tips on home lighting, visit:
http://homeenergy.org/hewebsite/consumerinfo/lighting/
http://homeenergy.org/archive/hem.dis.anl.gov/eehem/94/941116.html

- Burning fossil fuels
- Hydro-electric dams
- Nuclear power plants
- Air pollution
- Global warming
- Waste

These are added costs that we, our kids and future generations are having and will be coping with in years to come. Is it not time for us to rather do something more positive in how we spend our money, make our decisions about energy efficiencies?

We can all do our part, every day in our routines and homes to advocate, practice, promote and ensure energy-efficient cost-effective homes and habits. This is a role and calling for every homeowner.

Here are some more very PRACTICAL suggestions from online sources on what to do with regards to small changes in and around your home, to improve energy efficiency and capitalize on lower utility bills and other cost savings:

Refrigerators

Refrigerators use the most energy of any home appliance. Here are some tips for efficient refrigerator use:

· Place refrigerators out of direct sunlight and away from the stove and other heat-producing appliances.
· Decide what features you really need and use. Through-the-door features like cold water or automatic ice dispensers can increase electricity usage by as much as 20 per cent compared to similar models without these extras.
· Buy an Energy Star approved refrigerator. A 2002 Energy Star refrigerator uses less than half the electricity of a standard 10-year-old model!
· If you buy a new refrigerator, unplug your old one. There is no energy efficiency in continuing to use your energy guzzler.
· Find cold storage spaces to store fresh foods safely without using any electricity.

Our electrical appliances aren’t just connected to a socket on the
wall – they’re also connected to the natural world.
By choosing energy-efficient homes and appliances, we can
help conserve nature and reduce our energy bills.

Dr. David Suzuki, Environmentalist

Trends indicate that there are many more stepping up in the general populace to pick alternatives for old methods, costly energy bills and other inefficiencies.

Here are some more trends and ways you can take advantage of some of the building and technology advances out there to deal with energy demands of living and dwelling in modern-day homes:

- Homes that incorporate the best energy-efficient strategies and renewable-energy systems
- Homes that generate what they consume
- Homes getting way less electricity only when they need it from resources other than the solar panels *cloudy days/nighttime
- Home designs geared and customized to regional climates.
- Electricity produced by rooftop solar panels
- Currently more than one third of all our energy use is actually for heating/cooling our homes and for running appliances and electric devices
- Energy independence does not have to be expensive and for a select few – it is increasingly becoming within easy reach of every household budget
- Many states offer incentives for green building and renewable energy.
- Solar home developments are presently not limited to the East and West coast states anymore (where electricity use, demand and need is typically higher/highest!). They are also popping up in Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York and Texas

Produced cooperatively by
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Building Technology,
State and Community Programs
1000 Independence Avenue S.W.
Washington, DC 20585
1-800-363-3732
http://www.eren.doe.gov

Additional assistance provided by
Alliance to Save Energy
1200 18th Street, N.W., Suite 900
Washington, DC 20036
1-202-857-0666
http://www.info@ase.org

Additional information available from
Federal Citizen Information Center
Pueblo, CO 81009
1-888-8-PUEBLO (1-888-878-3256)
http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov

Distribution assistance provided by
Countrywide Home Branch Locator
http://branches.countrywide.com/default.asp

Countrywide Home Loans, Inc.
CMD Secondary Markets/Product Deployment & Pricing Support
6400 Legacy Drive, PTX 66
Plano, TX 75024
(800) 669-6020
(972) 608-1602
http://www.countrywide.com

Additional information available from
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Office of Insured Single Family Housing
451 7th Street, S.W.
Washington, DC 20410
Consult your local phone directory
http://www.hud.gov

Additional information available from
U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs
810 Vermont Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20420
1-800-827-1000
http://www.va.gov