Resources

Lighting

• If you have both a large and a small oven, use the smaller one whenever possible.

• Save time and energy by using one oven to prepare the entire meal. A pie or cake can go into the oven as a main dish is removed.

• Warming foods, plates and platters with the ovens stored heat after baking, requires no energy. If the food must be kept warm for an extended period of time, set the oven no higher than 140@F to 200@F.

• Consider using a microwave oven, small portable electric frying pan, grill, or toaster/broiler instead of the oven. Cook outdoors, or prepare cold meals to avoid heating up the kitchen and adding moisture to the air. Microwaves use less than half the power of a conventional oven and cook food in about one-fourth the time.

• Cook by time and temperature. Precise timing eliminates repeated opening of the oven door to check on cooking progress. Each time the door is opened, the temperature drops 25@F to 50@F.

• Choose pots and pans that evenly cover the heating elements. Use pans with flat bottoms, straight sides and tight-fitting lids that hold heat and permit lower settings.

• Make use of crock pots, outdoor grills or one-pot-meal recipes to minimize the use of your stove top burners and oven.

• Use only enough water to produce steam and prevent sticking when cooking fresh or frozen vegetables.

• Make sure reflector pans beneath the stove’s heating elements are bright and clean. They reflect heat onto the bottom of the cookware.

• Covered pots or pans will boil or steam faster, allowing lower temperature settings.

• On a surface unit, start with high heat and lower the setting when the food starts to bubble or boil. Turn off the surface element or oven a few minutes before cooking time is up. Electric stoves stay hot for a few minutes after they’re turned off.

• Don’t line oven racks with foil. It blocks heat flow and makes the oven work harder to cook food.

• Do your heavy summer cooking in the cooler early-morning or evening hours. Try to use the range top more, the oven less.

• It takes energy to heat water so use as little as possible. Most frozen or fresh vegetables can be cooked in a quarter cup of water. Even eggs will cook in this reduced amount if the pan has a tight-fitting lid.

• Use a pressure cooker. It cuts cooking time to one-third that of conventional methods.

Cooking Appliances

• If you have both a large and a small oven, use the smaller one whenever possible.

• Save time and energy by using one oven to prepare the entire meal. A pie or cake can go into the oven as a main dish is removed.

• Warming foods, plates and platters with the ovens stored heat after baking, requires no energy. If the food must be kept warm for an extended period of time, set the oven no higher than 140@F to 200@F.

• Consider using a microwave oven, small portable electric frying pan, grill, or toaster/broiler instead of the oven. Cook outdoors, or prepare cold meals to avoid heating up the kitchen and adding moisture to the air. Microwaves use less than half the power of a conventional oven and cook food in about one-fourth the time.

• Cook by time and temperature. Precise timing eliminates repeated opening of the oven door to check on cooking progress. Each time the door is opened, the temperature drops 25@F to 50@F.

• Choose pots and pans that evenly cover the heating elements. Use pans with flat bottoms, straight sides and tight-fitting lids that hold heat and permit lower settings.

• Make use of crock pots, outdoor grills or one-pot-meal recipes to minimize the use of your stove top burners and oven.

• Use only enough water to produce steam and prevent sticking when cooking fresh or frozen vegetables.

• Make sure reflector pans beneath the stove’s heating elements are bright and clean. They reflect heat onto the bottom of the cookware.

• Covered pots or pans will boil or steam faster, allowing lower temperature settings.

• On a surface unit, start with high heat and lower the setting when the food starts to bubble or boil. Turn off the surface element or oven a few minutes before cooking time is up. Electric stoves stay hot for a few minutes after they’re turned off.

• Don’t line oven racks with foil. It blocks heat flow and makes the oven work harder to cook food.

• Do your heavy summer cooking in the cooler early-morning or evening hours. Try to use the range top more, the oven less.

• It takes energy to heat water so use as little as possible. Most frozen or fresh vegetables can be cooked in a quarter cup of water. Even eggs will cook in this reduced amount if the pan has a tight-fitting lid.

• Use a pressure cooker. It cuts cooking time to one-third that of conventional methods.

Heating

• Thermostats should be set and then forgotten. The more you change the setting during the day, the more likely you are to waste energy. Install a programmable thermostat that will give you 4 settings a day.

• Keeping the temperature a few degrees cooler can lower your heating bill and still keep you comfortable. During the day, keep the thermostat between 65@F and 68@F (18@ to 20@C). Cut up to three percent from your heating costs for every degree you set your thermostat back over an 8-hour period.

• Check forced air furnace filters regularly and clean or replace them as needed to keep efficient airflow through the system. Shake reusable filters outside or spray them with a garden hose. Be sure they’re dry before replacing.

• Close chimney dampers since warm air rises quickly up and out open chimneys. Close your damper as soon as you’re certain the fire is completely out.

• On cloudy days, keep drapes and blinds closed. Drapes add an extra layer of insulation. Mini-blinds also insulate, but not as much. On sunny days, open up the drapes and blinds to let in the suns free heat.

• Don’t block registers, baseboards, radiators or cold air returns. Air must circulate through and around them for maximum efficiency.

• Seal heating ducts and insulate those that run through unheated spaces.

• Have a professional inspect and tune-up your heating to help save on operating costs and extend the life of the system. A check-up is recommended every year for heat pumps and every five years for other systems.

Cooling Tips – Your energy use can go up in warm weather, too. Here are some ways to beat the heat and keep energy costs down:

• Maintain 78@F (26@C) or higher if you’re still comfortable. The higher you set the thermostat, the less it will operate unnecessarily.

• Keep air conditioners and swamp coolers clean. Air conditioner filters should be cleaned or replaced once a month during use. If you can do so safely, also clean the exposed grill and spines on the outside unit. Swamp cooler filters should be cleaned or replace every year. Make sure your floats and pumps are operating properly and that the water is distributed evenly over the filters.

• Don’t block window air conditioners. Make sure no objects are leaning on or directly in the path of the air flowing in or out.

• Use a programmable thermostat. Just like your heat, you only need your air conditioner or swamp cooler on when you’re home. Set timers to come on no more than 30 minutes before you arrive home.

• Make sure your home has the appropriate amount of insulation in walls, attics and crawl spaces. Insulation is just as important in the summer since it helps keep warm air outside.

• Seal air-conditioning ducts and insulate those that run through unconditioned spaces.

• Plant deciduous trees to shade your home’s walls, windows and roof in the summer.

• Install a ceiling fan to circulate air above the area where you spend most of your time. You’ll feel just as cool under a ceiling fan when it’s 82@F (28@C) as you would in 77@F (25@C) still air.

• Run exhaust fans when you shower or cook to vent warm air.

• Have a professional inspect and tune-up your central air system or swamp cooler to help save on operating costs and extend the life of the system. A check-up is recommended every year for heat pumps and every five years for other systems.

Caulking

The most important areas in your home to insulate are the attic, floors and walls. Here’s what you’ll need to know to get the job done:

• Do you need more insulation? As a rule, if you have less than three inches of existing insulation in the attic, you should probably add more to achieve proper levels. If none exists in the floors or walls, insulation is recommended.

• Decide whether you want to do the insulation work yourself or hire a contractor. Take into consideration that some insulation jobs are easier than others.

• If you do the job yourself, follow installation instructions carefully and adhere to proper safety precautions.

• If you’d like a contractor to do the work, make sure you get several bids. Only hire a licensed, bonded contractor.

• Decide what type of insulation you need (this will depend on the area you are insulating).

• When purchasing insulation, check the R-value. This indicates the effectiveness of insulation, the higher the number the higher the insulating capability. You can ask a knowledgeable salesperson to help determine the R-value of insulation you need.

Insulation

Laundry Room

Dishwashers

Refrigerators

• Keep condenser coils clean and unobstructed for maximum energy savings.

• Locate your refrigerator or freezer away from heating equipment, heater vents and direct sunlight. Provide adequate clearance above, behind and on the sides for good air circulation.

• Set the temperature of your refrigerator between 37@F and 40@F and your freezer at 0@F for top efficiency. The Food and Drug Administration also recommends these settings to prevent rapid bacterial growth.

• Clean door gaskets with warm water or a detergent that leaves no residue since a tight-sealing door gasket is critical to the efficiency of your refrigerator.

• Keep your refrigerator or freezer full, but do not overload it. Overloading causes the compressor to have to run longer. Place foods slightly apart on shelves, making sure they do not block the unites interior air vents.

• If you have a second older freezer that only has a little food in it, use the newer freezer and turn the old one off.

• Cover all liquids stored in the refrigerator. Moisture can be drawn into the air, making the unit work harder.

Water Usage

Your water heater is the second-largest energy user in your home. Here are some things you can do to help it run more efficiently:

• Add energy-efficient showerheads and faucet aerators. They reduce the amount of water released from a tap by up to 50 percent, with almost no noticeable difference in pressure.

• Insulate your water heater and set the water temperature at 120@F (49@C). Some dishwashers require the temperature to be slightly higher. Check with the manufacturer or consult your owners manual for your specific model. Caution: Turn the power off at the circuit breaker before changing the temperature on a water heater!

• Fix leaky faucets. A dripping faucet can waste 6 to 10 gallons (23-38 liters) of water a day. Repairs can be as simple and inexpensive as replacing a worn-out washer.

• Insulate hot and cold water pipes. If pipes are exposed beneath your home or in an unheated garage, insulate them with special pipe-insulating foam. This will help keep cold water pipes from freezing and hot water pipes hot.

• Take a shower instead of a bath. The average bath uses twice as much hot water as a 5-minute shower.

• Turn off faucets immediately after use. We all tend to leave the faucet running while we wash dishes or shave. When shaving or washing, fill the sink half-way instead of running the water. Turning on the faucet only when necessary can save thousands of gallons of water a year, not to mention the energy needed to heat it.

• Once or twice a year, drain a bucket of water from the water heater to remove sediment that can reduce the efficiency of the unit.