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Energy Savings
Tips
Summer Power Savers
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You can print NGEMC's summer
energy-saving brochure called "What's Up with My Bill?" in English and Spanish.
Reduce your air conditioning costs
The trick to reducing your summer air conditioning costs is to reduce the amount of time that your air conditioner runs. There are three basic ways to reduce operating hours. The first is to make sure your system is running properly with good maintenance and service. The second is to increase your thermostat setting either manually or automatically. And the third is to employ low-cost cooling methods.
For other low-cost cooling methods, try these improvements to reduce air conditioning costs:
- Have your central heating and air system serviced annually by a member of the TVA-certified Quality
Contractor Network.
- Turn your thermostat up four degrees and run room fans to move the air and cool your family by the wind chill effect. Fans can counteract the higher thermostat setting.
- Insulate your attic to the maximum practical depth of insulation. If your attic has less than 6 inches of insulation, add more insulation to total at least 16 inches.
- Line-dry your clothes if possible.
- Don’t use your oven on hot days.
- Install compact fluorescent lamps in the fixtures you use the most.
- Keep air vents clear of obstructions.
- Close the drapes on the sunny side of the house during the day.
- Leave storm windows and doors in place when the air conditioner is on.
- If you cool with window units, place them on the north side of the house when possible, clear vents of obstructions, shut doors to unused rooms, and close floor or wall registers used for heating.
- When you next re-roof your home, install white or other light-colored shingles. If you live in a mobile home, install a reflective white roof coating over your existing metal roof.
- Improve the efficiency of your air conditioning system by washing away leaves or other debris built up on the grilles and cut down any bushes less than three feet away from the outdoor unit of your air conditioner.
- Make sure your central system’s ductwork is sealed. Duct leaks can allow cool air to leak out into your attic or crawl space, or they can draw hot air and moisture into your home. Seal the seams in your ducts with duct mastic. Don’t use “duct tape” since it tends to come loose.
Tree shade can cut energy bills
Trees can be selected with appropriate sizes, densities, and shapes for almost any shading application. To provide continuous shade or to block heavy winds, use dense evergreen trees or shrubs.
Deciduous trees with high, spreading crowns (i.e., leaves and branches) can be planted to the south of your home to provide maximum summertime roof shading. Trees with crowns lower to the ground are more appropriate to the west, where shade is needed from lower afternoon sun angles.
Although a slow-growing tree may require many years of growth before it shades your roof, it will generally live longer than a fast-growing tree. Also, because slow-growing trees often have deeper roots and stronger branches, they are less prone to breakage by windstorms or heavy snow loads. Slow-growing trees can also be more drought resistant than fast-growing trees.
Spring is the best time to fertilize your trees. Trees in need of fertilizer often have small leaves or slightly discolored leaves. The best fertilizing method is to create holes in the ground that are 10 to 20 inches deep and an inch wide using a rod or auger. Place them in concentric rings around the perimeter of the tree, starting three feet away from the trunk and extending out to one-and-a-half times the diameter of the crown. Then pour liquid or granular fertilizer into the holes.
Water your trees deeply and only during dry weather. Avoid frequent shallow watering. Water for approximately one hour per inch of trunk thickness.
Trim your water heater costs
- Install aerating, low-flow faucets and showerheads.
- Repair leaky faucets promptly; a leaky faucet wastes gallons of water in a short period of time.
- Lower the thermostat on your water heater to 120°F.
- Take more showers than baths. Bathing uses the most hot water in the average household. You use 15 to 25 gallons of hot water for a bath, but less than 10 gallons during a 5-minute shower.
- Insulate the first six feet of the hot and cold water pipes connected to the water heater.
- If you
 are in the market for a new dishwasher or clothes washer, consider buying an efficient, water-saving model to reduce hot water use.
- Drain a quart of water from your water tank every three months to remove sediment that impedes heat transfer and lowers the efficiency of your heater. The type of water tank you have determines the steps to take, so follow the manufacturer’s advice.
- Although most water heaters last 10 to 15 years, it’s best to start shopping for a new one if yours is more than seven years old. Doing some research before your heater fails will enable you to select one that most appropriately meets your needs.
Conserving water is easy
Toilets: Facts and Tips
- Toilets can account for almost 30 percent of all indoor water use.
- Installing an ultra low-flow toilet uses just 1.6 gallons per flush. (Older toilets use 3.5-7 gallons per flush.)
- Approximately 20 percent of toilets leak. Check for leaks by placing a few drops of food coloring in the tank. If the dye shows up in the bowl after 15 minutes, your toilet has a leak. Usually, replacing the flapper will solve toilet leaks inexpensively.
- Placing one or two one-quart bottles filled with water in the tank of an older toilet can save you as much as 1,000 gallons of water per person, per year.
Showers and faucets: Tips for saving water
- Leaks in your sink or bathtub faucets can usually be repaired easily and inexpensively by replacing the rubber O-ring or washer inside the valve.
- Bathing ranks third highest for indoor water use and the second highest for home energy use. Take a quick shower rather than a bath and save about 20 gallons of water each time.
- If a one-gallon bucket placed under the shower flow takes less than 20 seconds to fill, replace your showerhead with a low-flow model (less than 2.5 gallons/minute).
- Turn off the water when shaving or brushing your teeth and you'll save an average of five gallons per person, per day.
- Check for leaks in your pipes by turning all water sources off and reading your water meter. Wait a half-hour or so and take another reading from the meter. If the dial has moved, you have a leak.
Add energy improvements to summer projects
Improvements to the outside of your home offer excellent opportunities to incorporate energy-saving measures with little additional effort. New siding, windows, and doors can improve the efficiency of your home, if installed carefully. Careless installation may however result in water damage, fogged or frosty windows, and drafts.
If you plan to repaint or replace the exterior siding on your home, don’t miss the opportunity to add wall insulation. Many older homes have wall cavities that are uninsulated or only partially insulated, allowing rapid heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer. Wall insulation is one of the most cost-effective energy savers available. Loose-fill insulation can be installed in these wall cavities through holes that are drilled through the siding or  sheeting underneath the siding. This requires specialized tools, so you should have a professional insulator do the job. Your new siding will cover the installation holes, saving the price of repair. If you’re only repainting, you’ll need to patch holes in the siding so they blend in once you’ve painted.
Some types of siding can be installed over a layer of foam insulation that’s added between the old and new siding. This layer can be added with or without the new cavity insulation described above.
New high-efficiency windows and doors can save a lot of energy if installed properly. One key to maintaining their efficiency is sealing the edges where they meet the wall so cold air and moisture can’t enter the home. Pay close attention to the hidden joints where the window or door meets the wall framing, as well as the visible seams at the siding. Fill large, hidden gaps with liquid urethane foam in a can, or with tightly packed fiberglass. Install a bead of good quality caulk at the surface of each joint, and paint it to match. Now your new window or door will perform at its best.
Save energy in the kitchen
There are many ways to save energy in the kitchen that require little extra effort. Most of these measures will also keep your kitchen cooler, and reduce the amount of moisture released into your home. These both reduce summer cooling costs.
- Use cold water for cooking, even if you’ll heat the water on the stove. Hot water that has been sitting in your water heater isn’t considered wholesome for cooking by health experts.
- Use lids on pots and pans when possible to speed cooking.
- Use pressure cookers for foods that require long cooking times. This will usually reduce the cooking time by three-quarters.
 - Avoid using your full-size oven. Use a microwave for small meals or leftovers.
- Defrost frozen foods in the refrigerator for a day or two before cooking. This is like putting a free block of ice in your refrigerator.
- Check the temperature of your refrigerator and freezer using an accurate thermometer. Adjust your refrigerator so it is no colder than 38-40 degrees. Adjust your freezer to 0-5 degrees.
- Run your dishwasher only when it’s full. Use the energy-saving cycle to save electricity and hot water.
- Finally, if you’re shopping for a new refrigerator or dishwasher, look for models that have an Energy Star label. These are the most efficient appliances made.
Watch for moisture problems
Too much moisture in your home can reduce its durability and comfort. Though some moisture is normal in every home, excess moisture can accumulate and damage your home’s structure. It can also encourage the growth of mold, mildew, and other organisms that cause health problems such as allergies and asthma. If you notice musty odors in your home, or if you have dark stains on your walls and ceiling, you should investigate the possibility of moisture accumulation.
Leakage through the roof, around doors and windows, or from plumbing leaks can allow a lot of moisture to enter your home. Fixing these leaks is the first defense against moisture problems.
The earth around your home is another a potential source of moisture. In all homes with a bare ground in the crawl space, plastic sheets should be installed on the ground in these homes to prevent water vapor from migrating into the home. If you have standing water in your basement or crawl space, you should consider installing a sump pump to carry water away. If you have gutters and downspouts, they should direct water away from your home. You should also limit irrigation around your foundation if you suspect moisture problems in your home.
Most homes need ventilation to remove moisture and odors that come from bathing, cooking, and other activities. Bathrooms and kitchens should have operating ventilation fans that are vented to the outdoors. If your home doesn’t have such fans, installing them is a very worthwhile home improvement. Your home will be healthier and drier when you eliminate this excess moisture.
Make absolutely sure that your exhaust fans vent to the outdoors through the roof or wall. The termination fitting or the fan itself should have a backdraft damper to prevent air from blowing in and out when the fan is off.
Reflective window shading options
If you have windows that face the summer sun, you know how much heat can pour into your home on a hot day. Luckily, there are some very effective ways you can stay cooler and reduce your utility costs by keeping some of this sun out of your home.
Reflective window shades and blinds have come a long way in recent years. Some of these reflective shades and blinds can be mounted outdoors where they block more solar heat than indoor installations. The best reflective shades and blinds block a maximum of up to 75 percent of solar heat when installed indoors and up to 100 percent when installed outdoors.
You’ll receive the greatest benefits from reflective window coverings if you install them on windows that get a lot of sun. These might face east, where the low morning sun starts to heat your house. They might face south, though on some homes the high noon sun isn’t at the right angle to actually enter your windows. Or you might choose to install shades on the west side of your home, where the low, hot afternoon sun really heats up.
There are also many types of self-adhesive window films on the market that can be applied directly to the interior of your existing window glass. Use these films on your hottest windows, perhaps in combination with window shades. Although some window films darken the window, newer types provide shading without reducing visible light much. To be effective, the film must be a metalized type. Non-metalized films don’t block enough solar heat to be cost-effective.
Exterior sun screens also come in reflective varieties in addition to the standard colors and black. Reflective sun screens reflect solar heat rather than absorbing it and are more effective at reducing temperatures of your windows in hot weather.
Save money in clothes washing
- Wash your clothes in cold water using cold-water detergents whenever possible.
- Wash and dry full loads. If you are washing a small load, use the appropriate water-level setting.
 - Dry towels and heavier cottons in a separate load from lighter-weight clothes.
- Don't over-dry your clothes. If your machine has a moisture sensor, use it.
- Clean the lint filter in the dryer after every load to improve air circulation.
- Use the cool-down cycle to allow the clothes to finish drying with the residual heat in the dryer.
- Periodically inspect your dryer vent to ensure it is not blocked. This will save energy and may prevent a fire. Manufacturers recommend using rigid venting material, not plastic vents that may collapse and cause blockages.
- Consider air-drying clothes on clothes lines or drying racks. Airdrying is recommended by clothing manufacturers for some fabrics.
- $ Long-Term Savings Tip: Look for the ENERGY STAR and EnergyGuide labels. ENERGY STAR clothes washers clean clothes using 50% less energy than standard washers. Most full-sized ENERGY STAR washers use 18-25 gallons of water per load, compared to the 40 gallons used by a standard machine. ENERGY STAR models also spin the clothes better, resulting in less drying time.
- $ Long-Term Savings Tip: When shopping for a new clothes dryer, look for one with a moisture sensor that automatically shuts off the machine when your clothes are dry. Not only will this save energy, it will save wear and tear on your clothes caused by over-drying.
Dry your clothes for free
One of the best ways to control your utility bills is to dry your clothes the old-fashioned way: on a clothesline. And there are advantages to line drying besides just saving energy.
 Your electric clothes dryer uses power to both produce heat and turn the drum. Most electric dryers consume between 800 to 1400 kilowatt-hours per year. Line drying can eliminate much of this usage and expense.
If you are fortunate enough to have an outdoor clothesline, you already know that clothes dried outdoors smell fresher, and they carry less residual odor from detergents and bleach. And you can often do without bleach when line drying since the sun will tend to lighten most fabrics. Sunlight has a natural sanitizing effect, too.
Line-dried clothes tend to be stiffer than clothes that come out of the dryer. If you'd like some articles such as your towels to be softer, send them through the dryer after you take them off the line. Just five minutes on the air-only cycle will do the job.
Save on indoor lighting
Making improvements to your lighting is one of the fastest ways to cut your energy bills. An average household dedicates 5 to 10 percent of its energy budget to lighting. Using new lighting technologies can reduce lighting energy use in your home by 50 to 75 percent.
- Use tube fluorescent and energy-efficient compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) in fixtures throughout your home to provide high-quality and high-efficiency lighting. Fluorescent lamps are much more efficient than incandescent (standard) bulbs and last about four to 10 times longer.
 - Turn off the lights in any room you’re not using, or consider installing timers, photo cells, or occupancy sensors to reduce the amount of time your lights are on.
- Use task lighting; instead of brightly lighting an entire room, focus the light where you need it.
- Consider three-way lamps; they make it easier to keep lighting levels low when brighter light is not necessary.
- Use four-foot fluorescent fixtures with reflective backing and electronic ballasts for your workroom, garage, and laundry areas.
- Consider using four-watt mini-fluorescent or electro-luminescent night lights.
- Use CFLs in all the portable table and floor lamps in your home.
- Recessed downlights (also called recessed cans) are now available that are rated for contact with insulation (IC rated), are designed specifically for pin-based CFLs, and can be used in retrofits or new construction.
- Take advantage of daylight by using light-colored, loose-weave curtains on your windows to allow daylight to penetrate the room while preserving privacy. Also, decorate with lighter colors that reflect daylight.
- If you have torchiere fixtures with halogen lamps, consider replacing them with compact fluorescent torchieres, which use 60 to 80 percent less energy, can produce more light, and do not get as hot as the halogen torchieres.
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