Practical Tips
For Individuals & Families
(go here for Business & Industry Tips)
A selection of energy categories
designed to help you make the best choices, with a minimum amount of time and effort
-
Appliances
Ducts
Energy Auditing
Green Power
Home
Lighting
Renewable Energy (Solar, wind, etc)
South Facing Windows
Transportation
Water Heating
Other Helpful Links
How To Make The Best Choice For The Environment*
The Consumer's
Guide To Effective Environmental Choices
* as best as sound science can define it to date, anyway -
that's science - it evolves!
How To Make The Best Choice For California*
The Consumer Energy
Center
*An EXCELLENT site from the California Energy Commission!
Calculate Your Ecological
Footprint - WOW!
13 Simple Questions Will Assess Your Use of Nature
Compared to the worldwide biologically productive
space available per person (2.2 hectares or 5.4 acres).
Appliances
In the market for new appliances? Get the most savings
for the least cost by selecting the right appliance. In general, you can save a lot
on your energy bill and pay back your initial investment, if any, very quickly. Simply
compare the purchase cost of your choices with annual cost to operate (on the yellow
Energy Guide Label found on all new appliances). In some cases you can save $50/year
in energy bills with a less expensive option; this was the case with The Energy Guy's
recent purchase of a new refrigerator! Check out the links below for more information
-
Show me an
example
Take me to the
Appliance Information Links
Take me
to the Appliance Marketplace
- New Featured Site -
Top-Rated Energy-Efficient Appliances
New from ACEEE - find the top-rated Refrigerators, Dishwashers, Clothes Washers , Room Air Conditioners, Central Air Conditioners, and Conventional (Air-Source) Heat Pumps.$ $ - REBATES FOR CALIFORNIA ENERGY USERS - $ $
Auditing
A comprehensive building audit will tell you what you will
gain from an energy retrofit as well as how much the installation will cost.
A simple, "do it yourself approach," to an energy audit -
EnergyBill.com
EnergyBill.com is a website that actually allows you, the consumer, to manager your energy bill. Utility websites can give you tips and advice on how to conserve energy and money, and that's fine. In fact, we offer the same information here. The difference is that now you can find out how good that advice is! It's common sense that if you buy a more energy efficient air-conditioner, you will save money. But how much will you save? And is that worth the extra money you pay for a more energy efficient appliance? With EnergyBill.com you have a way to find out.
Other Auditing-Related Links
Ducts
It's a little known fact that heating and/or cooling ducts are,
on average, only about 65% efficient due to leakage, poor insulation and other factors.
It costs only $150-$300 more to install a new duct system that is 85% efficient (costs
are higher when retrofitting existing systems).
How much can you save? If your furnace is 95% efficient (about as high as they go) and your duct system is just 65% efficient, your overal "system efficiency" is just 62% (0.95x0.65=0.62)! With an 85% efficient duct system you would be saving about 23% on your heating and/or cooling bills (0.95x0.85=0.81). In new construction, the savings "payback" period is generally less than three years!
Take me to the Ducted
System Information Links
Take
me to the Ducted System Marketplace
$ $ - SOME UTILITIES PAY FOR TIGHTENING YOUR DUCTS (Calif) - $ $
Home
The untapped potential for homes to save energy, cost effectively,
is staggering. Although the economic investment opportunities may be staggering,
the environmental, comfort,
productivity and health benefits are pretty impressive
too.
One of the easiest things you can do right off the bat is purchase Green Power or, better yet, make your own! Other fairly easy things you can deal with on your own are appliances and lighting, covered on this page. Beyond that, it's important to keep in mind that every home is a little different. Many factors need to be weighed in, such as the climate, your current building configuration, the range of alternatives and associated costs, and a variety of other things. This is why Professional Assistance. is recommended for home design, heating/cooling system design, and other such complex decisions. For some idea of your potential to save money, energy, and the environment, check out the following links:
Energy Guide
A guide for purchasing energy efficient products, evaluating
energy efficient options in your home and choosing an energy supplier.
Home Energy Saver
Enter your zip code and learn the best ways to save
energy in your home.
Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings
Links to Energy-Efficient Products from ACEEE (The American Council for an Energy Efficient Environment)Potential For Cost Effective Savings In Your Home
Star Performers
A new product label helps you save energy and money. Article by Jon Howland; The Magazine of the Union of Concerned Scientists Vol. 20 No. 3 Fall 1998.$ $ - REBATES FOR CALIFORNIA ENERGY USERS - $ $
Lighting
Save up to 75% on your lighting costs! The energy savings can range
from $24 to $50 over the life of the bulb (at 10 cents per kilowatt-hour). Because
Compact Fluorescent Lighting (CFL) products cost just $8 - $20 over typical incandescent
bulbs, they offer you a way to make a great return on your investment with a very
small initial cost.
Take me to the Lighting
Information Links
Take me to the Lighting
Marketplace
$ $ - REBATES FOR CALIFORNIA ENERGY USERS - $ $
South Facing Windows
Want to know the best kept secret in buying
a home? If the largest area of glass in the home faces south, you could save a lot
of money and be more comfortable at the same time! In Sacramento, CA, it would save
you about 25% on your heating bill and 34% on your cooling bill compared to a home
with the large area of glass facing some other direction. Check out the link below
for more information.
$ $ - REBATES FOR CALIFORNIA ENERGY USERS - $ $
Transportation
Cars not only "money pits," but they're responsible for
a majority of our environmental problems like climate change. To make a really huge contribution
to the environment, not to mention your pocketbook, choose transportation with the
highest miles per gallon rating (on the side windows for a new car). Or consider
alternatives, like electric or hybrid powered vehicles (most peoples second car doesn't
need to go more than 40-100 miles per day). If you'd like to know a whole lot more,
check out the links below for more information!
Take
me to the Transportation Information Links
Take
me to the Transportation Product Links
- WOW!
How To Buy
Your Next Car
This website is by the Breakthrough Technologies Institute
Compare
different types of transportation
Direct
fuel use (average energy intensity of different options)
- WOW!
Indirect
energy use (roads, producing fuels, building
and maintaining infrastructure, and manufacturing and repairing vehicles
Externalities
(cost of environmental damage, etc) - WOW!
Water Heating
Water heating is a big part of a typical family energy bill, on average
about a quarter to a third of the total. Like appliances, big savings can be had
at a modest additional cost, providing a payback within just a few years. For example,
a high efficiency 40 or 50 gallon gas water heater with an energy factor of 0.62
is only a few hundred dollars more expensive than one with an energy factor of 0.54.
It's easy to compare the annual operating cost on the Energy Guide Label of a new,
high efficiency "0.62" water heater with the cost of a "0.54"
model - try it, and prove to yourself the high efficiency model is the smarter choice.
There are lots of other water heating choices available too, so check out these links
-
Take me to the Water
Heating Information Links
Take me to the
Water Heating Marketplace
$ $ - REBATES FOR CALIFORNIA ENERGY USERS - $ $
Alliance To Save Energy
- Consumer Page
Alliance To Save Energy
Adbusters
Adbusters Magazine covers issues of interest to consumer advocates.
Consumer information
Includes a number of links to consumer organizations. Founded in 1982 by Ralph Nader,
Essential Information is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization. They are involved
in a variety of projects to encourage citizens to become active and engaged in their
communities. They provide provocative information to the public on important topics
neglected by the mass media and policy makers. Essential Information publishes a
monthly magazine, books and reports, sponsors investigative journalism conferences,
provides writers with grants to pursue investigations and operate clearing houses
which disseminate information to grassroots organizations in the United States and
the Third World.
The Corporate Accountability
Project
Of the world's 100 largest economies, 51 are now global corporations, rather than
countries! This site has pages covering corporate dirt, corporate welfare, and a
variety of related information.
Grist Magazine
Grist Magazine covers issues of interest to consumer advocates.
Earth Communications
Office
Their mission is to use the power of communication
to improve the global environment. This is the sort of Public Service Announcement
material The Energy Guy has been praying for!
Energy Guide
A guide for purchasing energy efficient products, evaluating
energy efficient options in your home and choosing an energy supplier.
Energy
Savers
From the U.S. Department of Energy
Home Sweet Home
Television Spot
Alliance To Save Energy
Last revised
06/13/2006