Share your energy/resource saving tips

[Amber]

Ahhhh, I love this thread!  My undergraduate major was in Environmental Biology so I had a bunch of this stuff crammed in my head!  Thank goodness all of that stuff is actually useful (as compared to physics, calculus and organic chemistry!).

*  In addition to cell phone adapters etc. even your toasters, blenders, coffee pots etc use up energy when they are left plugged in.

*  The good ol' brick in the toilet routine is a great idea for water conservation with your toilet.  Along with the "never run the water while you brush your teeth"  it's amazing how much water that actually saves.  I'm also an advocate of the 2 minute shower, but I don't get many followers with me on that one *lol*

*  Recycling/composting as much as possible is not only good for the environment but cuts down on the amount of trash you produce, thereby cutting down on the cost of trashbags and perhaps your trash service depending on where you live and what trash company you are with.

* Along with turning off your lights is using as much natural light as possible.  Opening your blinds and curtains (especially in the morning/evening when there aren't any heat issues - in the heat of the day it's actually better to close everything to keep things cooler) is a great way to use the environment and cut back on your energy bill.

*  Energy saving light bulbs seem to cost more up front but actually save  you a lot of money in the long term.

*  Water your lawn in the early morning.  Your lawn will soak up more of the water instead of having it evaporate in the afternoon heat.

I love everyone's ideas.  It reminds me that I'm not always doing everything I can to make a difference.  When you're dealing with the environment a little really does go a long way.

P.S. -  "An Inconvenient Truth" is high on my list of movies to see.  It's exciting to see such a MAJOR global issue hit the mainstream.

[Jeff Wrangler]

*  The good ol' brick in the toilet routine is a great idea for water conservation with your toilet.  Along with the "never run the water while you brush your teeth"  it's amazing how much water that actually saves.  I'm also an advocate of the 2 minute shower, but I don't get many followers with me on that one *lol*

That reminds me. When I had my bathroom remodeled last year, the contractor installed a new, "low-flow" toilet. Works just as well as the old-fashioned toilets that used a lot more water.

[starboardlight]

A friend of mine just emailed me about LED lights. It's pretty interesting, so I thought I'd repost it here for you all to see. there are links too if you care to follow them.

_____________________________________________
LED lights are expensive! 

But over the life (even considering present value for those of you who are money types) they are less expensive. That is why you are seeing them in traffic lights and car lighting.They greatly reduce the amount of electricity we consume which reduces the amount of co2 in the air which increases the likelihood that our children (or nieces and nephews) will be able to live a good life.

Why don't we all try and buy one bulb and see what we think?  If you are doing new construction, you can implement LED lighting instead of traditional lighting and the cost goes down dramatically. Replacing an incandescent bulb with an LED is expensive because the base of the bulb has to include a power converter (since LED's use such low amounts of electricity).  They have replacement bulbs for incandescent, and halogen bulbs. 

If any of you early adopters out there tried LED lighting a few years ago, don't worry they've gotten much much better. 

The LED is better than the cool florescence because they last much longer, have a better quality of light (no green/blue cast) and they contain no toxic chemicals.

You can buy some here, or do a google search -  http://store.lsgc.com/

For the I-want-to-know-more people...
Some LED bulbs are rated at 50,000 hours, many are rated at 100,000. 
The cost of the bulbs are going down too.  The above link above has a 100 lumen bug light for $15.00

Just so you know - it is difficult to find a replacement bulb that has an output of over 450 lumens (roughly a 40watt bulb)
 
If you install new lighting (new construction or remodel) it is easy to get the light quality and quantity you want/need.   Also GREAT for landscaping!!

For now, if you are buying a replacement bulb you should either use it as accent or reading lights or where you can build the light up with several light bulbs
For example LED's are perfect for Chandelier lights (you can put in several and still not come close to the watt rating on the chandelier).
If you have low watt track lighting, or a bathroom fixture with several lights then LED is a good way to go. 
LED replacement bulbs are not good for just about anything other than the primary overhead light bulb.
LED replacement bulbs are not dim-able (new installations are fully dim-able)


Note:  this is what one site claims.. It is a bit biased but it uses old data (that has improved in favor of LED's) 

The Main Bias here is that it compares a 60 watt incandescent with a 2 watt LED. The bulb that they are talking about with two watts has a lumen output more equivalent to a 25 watt light bulb so you would need a few to get the same amount of lumens.  (therefore to get 75 watts you'd end up spending $140.85 over the 60,000 life saving you only $259.35 but getting more light). The cost of that bulb is now less and many other bulbs have higher lumen/watt output.  Regardless over the long haul you save money in real terms.

Cree (an LED manufacturer — http://www.cree.com/products/lightleds.asp) has just announced that they have can produce a 100 lumen/watt LED. which is incredible (incandescent light bulbs output roughly 20-30 lumens/watt)  but they do not sell replacement bulbs, only for new installation... (again why if you are doing construction or remodeling you should consider LED's 

[henrypie]

Nipith,
Hooray for Trader Joe's!  They are the exception to my mainstream grocery-store rule.  (Also Whole Foods, although cost keeps me at bay there.)  I do about a third of my grocery shopping at Trader Joe's, in fact, and it is always a good experience.  The employees have their brains on full-power and thank me for bagging and thank me for supplying my own.  By the way do TJ's in CA sell alcohol?  In MD they don't, but in VA they do, and I've stocked up in Alexandria.  They have some very good beer and wine at crazy-good prices.  What a wonderful store.


I thought of another point:  disposable paper products in general, like Clorox wipes or Swiffer lint-pads.  Don't be tempted!  They're all going in the landfill, whereas your torn-up old t-shirt rags will serve you over and over again.


And paper towels:  When I wash and dry vegetables or squeeze-dry chopped spinach, I use a clean dishtowel instead.


On disposable diapers:  If I should ever have the opportunity/curse of making diaper decisions, I plan at this point anyway to use cloth diapers at home, and avail myself of the convenience of disposables while on the go.  I have some experience, via babysitting, with cloth diapers, and they are not the end of the world.  Like, almost the end, but not the very end.  Talk to me in ten years.

[LED's: I happen to live with a light-bulb geek, and he's all over LED's like a bee on a soda can.]

[Jeff Wrangler]

Untold generations of human beings--including mine--had only cloth diapers, and our mothers survived, and we grew up fine.  They even used to have businesses called "diaper services," though whether they just laundered your own cloth diapers or whether you, in effect, "rented" the diapers I don't know. I just remember the company back home was called "Baby's Di-dee Service." I used to see their panel trucks on the streets, with uniformed drivers making deliveries of bundles of diapers, just the way bread and dairy products used to be delivered right to your door.

Sorry--this isn't supposed to be a nostalgia thread.

I have a confession to make. I use Swiffers to clean my bathroom and kitchen floors.  In a highrise condominium, there is no way to dispose of a bucket of dirty scrub water that doesn't require something else to be cleaned afterward.

But I do follow Mother's custom and use old t-shirts for dusting and other cleaning, no disposable stuff there.

And I never thought of using a clean dishtowel for drying salad and veggies. Neat idea!

[JennyC]

Thanks for the tips about idled changers and appliances plugged in.  I went home and checked we do have quite a few.  The thing is I can not unplug everything and only plug them when I need to use them.  For one, I don’t ever want to get under my desk to tackle all the wires for the computers and its peripherals.  Then you have all the lamps, TVs, DVDs, cable box, major appliances, etc.  I guess that’s where I stop and say that I have to leave them on for the convenience.  Anyway I did get cell phone chargers, laptop chargers, and my husbands’ razor, hair dryer, coffee machine unplugged.  Those are either not used that often or easy to plug in again.

[JennyC]

Expand your comfortable temperature range

For some people, the only comfortable temperature range is from 65 F to 75 F (or something like that).  Anything below that, the heat has to be on.  Anything above that, the A/C has to be on.  It’s not uncommon to be in places where it’s too hot to wear sweater during winter or so cold that you need a sweater in the summer.  There is nothing wrong to dress according to the seasons.  I am not talking about that you have to wear a coat indoor during winter, but a sweater is nice and fitting.  Same goes for summer when we want to wear short sleeve shirts, skirts, shorts, etc.  The problem with central A/C building is you don’t even know how to adjust the temperature. 

The point is if we can all be a little bit more tolerate to the comfort temperature range, a lot of energy can not saved from all the heating and cooling.  I have lived 20 years without A/C.  It’s a shame to think that now I can’t live without one during hot summer days.   It’s so easy to adapt to the convenience and comfort, and it’s almost irreversible.    If I must use one, I will try not to use it that frequently. 

There are many tips in terms of how to use A/C most efficiently, like don't leave it on all day, turn it off at nights, etc.  But the bottom line is we need to get ourselves out of the mentality that we can only live in 71 F (which I heard is the most comfortable temperature for the human being) all year long.

[Giancarlo]

We really need a break through on nuclear fusion energy... which produces almost unlimited power and little/no radioactive byproducts.

[henrypie]

But the bottom line is we need to get ourselves out of the mentality that we can only live in 71 F (which I heard is the most comfortable temperature for the human being) all year long.

This is so true, Jenny.

[Giancarlo]

This is so true, Jenny.

Or move close to the beach where you get the off shore breeze. My sister gets it and see lives in Redondo Beach.. it never gets over 85F and usually stays around 75F. Where in constrast, in the San Fernando Valley it was 110F+..