How to save on energy costs?

[Tiffany]

We're moving in to a house this month, and previously always had a "heat and lights included" package with our rent. We're a bit nervous as we've been told hydro has run as high as $500 for this particular home during the winter months. So, we're looking for ways to save energy...

The home is two levels, very large. All of the bedrooms are upstairs, which I believe is a good thing. The kitchen is in the back of the first level, and off of it is a large sunroom, which is not insulated. There is a space-heater out there (that's where my hubby smokes), but I doubt we'll leave that on all of the time as I've heard they are super-dangerous and killer on your energy bill.

We both work the same shift, and were considering lowering the heat to the absolute minimum while we were gone-- except the whole idea of coming home to a cold home is a bit harsh, and due to the size, I'd expect it to be slow to warm.

One last question-- would leaving our two computers on in sleep-mode make a significant difference in energy costs?

Any advice would be much appreciated! :)

[notfarnow]

Electric heat? If so, heat is going to be your #1 consumer. I read somewhere that every 2*C takes 10% more energy.Wear nice thick slippers, and a sweater, then set the heat no higher than 17 degrees.You'll get used to it.

[Truthiness Inc]

Hi Thread!

Keep bats, pigeons, and hobos away from your water heater, they're always sucking up the heat!
If you're going to use solar power, move somewhere that has sun, anywhere 20 minutes outside of Saint John is quite use to seeing this marvel of the know universe...heard those power saver lights work wonders, but then again, the government uses them to monitor our Dailey lives..Might want to stay away from those?



Take a walk on the truth side!


Truthiness Inc

[jdobbs]

Windows and Doors will probably be the worst place for heat loss. You can get plastic wraps to cover windows, towels can be placed at the bottom of doors.

[kaj27]

The shrink kits are good for older windows, If they are new it's pointless.

Energy efficient florescent light bulbs, You know the new hip ones the spiral ones! They can cut costs. Considering...Mine use 13 Watts and put out 60 Watts worth of light. Weather stripping on outside doors or a draft dodger.

Turning the computers off all together is the best bet. Leaving monitors and Computers in standby still uses power. May not be much but it can add up. If your computer boot time is slow consider using the hibernate mode. It just saves what you are doing and reduces boot time a lot.

If you have baseboard heat (electric heat) get yourself a few programmable thermostats. You can have the heat kick in when you wake up and shut off when you leave for work and have it come back on when you get home without pressing a button!

Also if you guys drive and you plan on using a block heater. Check Canadian Tire for the 20min timer. It cycles on and off for 20mins at a time, saves a lot of money in the winter months!


Hope that helps.

[hiph0p]

i just moved into an appartment and this is the 1st time i had to pay for heat and now i understand WHY... i have every heater all the way up and its still cold like you need a blanket,slippers and pants/long sleves on to be warm i cant wait to move.... 5 more days :D

[The_Dave]

If it is electric heat you turn the thermostats to 15 when you are home and yes wear slippers and a comfortable seater if you are still chilly. If you turn the themostats up high to first heat the house when you get home, don't because the place will not heat any faster. Turn thermostats to 13 when on one is home or when you are all snuggly in bed. Check the windows and doors for drafts and fill these in asap. Close doors in rooms you do not use to keep the draft from them out.

[user5624]

Energy effecient appliances. Don't use hot water when not needed (Like leaving it running when you're brushing your teeth)
Windows and doors can be drafty if they're old. If this is the case, you might want to look into replacing those next summer.
As others said, florescent light bulbs.
We did this stuff along with new heater (ours are electric and they were old) so we replaced those with the thermostats. My hydro bill has gone down every year since I got the house 3 years ago. (I'm on equalized billing) maybe look into that too?
Keep lights off in rooms when you're not in them.
I leave my computer on all of the time but turn the monitor off at nights. Same with my laptop.
Clothes line in the summer time would also help if this house has a dryer hook up. I know that's not winter relevant but it's always nice to get a low power bill :)
Here's some tips from NB Power on how to save on hydro http://www.nbpower.com/en/commitment/savings/information/tips/tips.aspx

[friskeywhiskey]

use energy efficient light bulbs in all light sockets
wash in the coldest setting possible
ensure you wash full loads rather then waste energy doing multiple small loads same goes with dryer
do not overload the dryer but still dry full loads
use clothesline in summer
plastic on windows
makesure heaters are clean
weaterstripping for doors
you can replace windows and doors when you can afford it but the best bang for the buck is to insulate the house properly if you have dollars rather then purchase windows and doors
it is best to have your heat set are around 17 C and only knock it down 2 or 3 degrees when not home or sleeping if you lower them any more then you do not save money as it uses more enegry to increase temperature in a home rather than maintaining it at one temperature or near one temperature (this is best done with programmable themostats)
turn computers off when not in use
most new televisions if left plugged in constantly are drawing power (stereo recievers are bad for this too) if possibly these should be unplugged when not in use
do not have freezers or fridges next to a heat source (stove or heater) as this requires them to work harder in order to maintain the temperature
use a chest freezer rather then a stand up one, stand up may be more convienent however everytime you open the door cold air ruses out then the freeze must work to reach the desired temperature again whereas a chest freeze mostly holds the cold air in the freezer or at less holds more in
insulate your hot water heater so as to keep the heat in the tank rather then the heat disapate into the air and the heater work to increase temperature again
lower the themostat on your hotwater tank
insulate any water pipes particularly hot water ones
install energy efficient showerheadsHope this helps!

[Shorty]

kuods to everyone who has posted in here, really great tips !! Here are a few web pages I have found over time with great info also.

http://www.energyefficiency.org/eecentre/eecentre.nsf/internetE/B1D61EAA48746583852569B800564275?opendocument

http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/general.html ~ really cool ~ snoop around some in here.

http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/commercial/technical-info/archives-headsup/sept-oct-05-xiii-5.cfm?attr=20

http://incentivesandrebates.ca/gc_fi_search.asp
Take advantage of grants, rebates, discounts and other incentives available to help you use less energy, switch to renewable energy and produce less waste at home and on the road.

I hope these sites help, and I hope it is ok to list them here, they are government sites, and information sites, so it should be ok ?? If it is not I am sure someone in admin will let me know.

[Cartersmom]

Hi Tiffany!
If you don't like coming home to a chilly house, get the programmable thermostats, they are worth their weight in gold, and you can install them yourself.
Set the times on it so it starts up 1/2 hour before you get home from work. Also about 1/2 hour before you wake up in the morning. And set them to turn off 10min before you leave, and right before you go to bed..We set ours to 15 for overnights, and when we're out..and home 18, although you can manually turn it down or off too. So often I'll be home and it reads 17 or so..or we're all cold or having company and we turn it to 19 ..nice and comfortable.

For those considering turning down their hot water heater, do your research first to make sure it's still the acceptable temp for staving off bacteria. Those herd of old people in Ontario in the nursing home who all died were becasue they were bathing in water that had been stagnanting in a hot water tank that was set too low.

[Misty589]

we found a big differance when we put an automatic thremostat in our house. when we are not home it is set to 17 degrees and when we are home it is 20. It is said that if you have any more than 3 degrees differance it will cost more to heat the house back up then what you saved lowering it.
when ours is at 17 degrees it rarely clicks on and when it does it is for a short time and doesnt take long to heat the house back up to "room" temperature

[richunclepennywise]

We are fortunate enought to have an unused room in our house, we use it to hang our laundry in, we don't have to save only in the summer. :D

[trinity]

If you do get a programmable thermostat, make sure that you get the kind for your type of heat-the one for oil heat will not work for electric heat. I also noticed a decrease in my power bill when I put a floor lamp in my bedroom and started using that instead of my ceiling light-the floor lamp takes 15W bulbs. We also switched completely to the energy efficient bulbs and mostly use table lamps instead of whole ceiling fixtures.