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Climate Stewardship Opportunities |
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Prairie Climate Stewardship Network |
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Some facts on what we are using and on making a difference. |
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Energy Saving Tools Links |
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Opportunities for Energy Efficiency and Conservation: starting at home |
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For more information on compact fluorescent light bulbs go to GE Lighting Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb FAQs and Westinghouse FAQs. For information on how to choose and where to use CFLs, including light output equivalency (when replacing incandescent with CLFs), sizes and shapes, warm or cool light, go to Energy Star Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs. For information on determining when to turn off lights, including CFLs, go to US Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. "Turning off fluorescent lights for more than 5 seconds will save more energy than will be consumed in turning them back on again. Therefore, the real issue is the value of the electricity saved by turning the light off relative to the cost of relamping a fixture." To find full spectrum compact fluorescent light bulbs go to RE Williams Contractor Inc. and Full Spectrum Solutions. For information on proper disposal of CFLs Download PDF |
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Thermostat management: A two-degree adjustment to your thermostat setting can lower heating bills by 4% and prevent 500 pounds of CO2 from entering the atmosphere each year. Proper insulation and weatherization can prevent warm air from leaking into your home in cooling seasons and out of your home in heating seasons, thereby saving a substantial amount of energy Caulk, seal, and weather-strip all seams, cracks, and openings to the outside. Often, the effect of many small leaks in a home is equivalent to a wide open door. Taking care of these is the easiest money saving measure. Ensure doors and windows are energy efficient in that they are insulated and seal tightly, as a third of a typical home's heat loss occurs around and through doors and windows. If you do not want to replace your doors an windows with and energy efficient one, you can do the following to be more energy efficient. Doors:
Windows:
Strategically place trees, shrubs and other landscape structures to block the wind and provide shade. |
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Many energy efficient appliances have an initial purchase cost, but they save significant amounts of money in lower energy costs. Over a life of an appliance, an energy-efficient model is always a better deal. When replacing an appliance, choose an EnergyStar appliance. These are appliances that have been identified by the US Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy as the most energy-efficient products in their class. Refrigerators account for 20% of household electricity use. Replacing an older refrigerator with a new energy efficient one can save significantly on energy bills and emissions. With older models, a large amount of electricity can be saved by:
Using compact fluorescent lighting instead of incandescent can cut lighting costs 30% to 60%, while enhancing light quality and reducing environmental impact. With lighting and appliances, when not in use, turn them off. Rather than using a clothes dryer, hang your clothes up on a line to dry. Phantom Loads: go to. |
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Thinking about replacing your television set? Consider the following as you choose what you buy As of November 2008, EPA revised the Energy Star television specifications to raise the bar on efficiency requirements to cover all modes of operation.
Prior to November 2008
Energy Use In general,
For a list of energy efficient televisions go to “Energy Efficient TVs: The NRDC Listings.” CNET’s “The Chart: Review of HDTV power consumption compared” provides a detailed listing of rear projection, LCD and plasma television sets. To find out the energy efficiency rating of a television set, click on the item. “The most-efficient HDTVs also earn our "power saver" badge. Here are the qualifications: A TV must be a current model that was measured by CNET's reviews team to have a default picture mode that uses 0.2 watt per square inch or less and its overall wattage must be among the upper-third of TVs we've tested with an energy rating of Good, all while achieving a brightness level higher than 40 footlamberts. Since we created the award in April 2009, most of the LCD TVs we've reviewed have qualified . . . . *None of the plasma TVs we've reviewed since that date qualify.”
Why What Each of Us Chooses Matters The price of big-screen high-definition TVs is coming down. More and more people will soon be able to afford them. Bigger screens aren't the only culprits for TV's growing energy draw. The nation's move to high-definition TV, or HDTV, requires sets to deliver more picture clarity, which draws more power. If we do not choose to buy energy efficient television sets, we will lock-in power consumption at higher levels – people keep a TV five to 15 years. There are about 275 million TVs currently in use in the U.S., consuming over 50 billion kWh of energy each year — or 4 percent of all households' electricity use. This is enough electricity to power all the homes in the state of New York for an entire year. Taking the energy efficiency of a new TV into consideration is smart, because today’s TVs and all the connected components like DVRs (Digital Video Recorders), DVD players, and speakers can add nearly $200 to your energy bill annually. Americans are watching some 16 percent more TV than in the 1980s – if DVD and video-game viewing is included. Using the best available technology could reduce this new generation of big-screen TV "active mode" consumption by at least 25 percent, saving 10 billion kilowatt-hours per year. In addition to chopping residential electric bills by $1 billion, using the best available technology would prevent 7 million extra tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. (From: http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0616/p13s02-stct.htm “As TVs grow, so do electric bills;” http://www.nrdc.org/air/energy/energyeff/tv.pdf “Televisions: Active Mode Energy Use and Opportunities for Energy Savings;” GreenTech Media Newsletter “How Much Energy Does It Take To Watch TV,” 11/11/2007, http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=find_a_product.showProductGroup&pgw_code=TV, http://energystar.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/energystar.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=3095&p_created=1180022918, http://energystar.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/energystar.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=4909&p_created=1200426433, http://reviews.cnet.com/green-tech/tv-power-test/?tag=greenGuideBodyColumn.2) For printer-friendly version of "Thinking about replacing your television set?" Download PDF or Download Word before printing. |
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Phantom loads are electrical devices operating 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, even when you think the device is turned off. Action: Reduce phantom loads and conserve energy by plugging appliances to a power strip that is equipped with its own power switch. Switch the power on and off as needed.* The typical US home has more than 25 phantom loads. Phantom Loads:
*Appliances with remote controls: this method will disable the unit's remote until the power is turned on. Source: Minnkota Messenger, September/October 2007, pp 6-7 |
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source: http://awesome.goodmagazine.com/transparency/008/trans008vampireenergy.html |
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Four ways to conserve energy and reduce your water heating bills:
Reducing the amount of hot water used. This can be done with little or no initial cost and only minor changes in lifestyle:
A new, energy efficient water heater can save $200 or more annually in water heating costs. A solar water-heating system can save up to $350 a year. |
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