When you save energy, you save money. But where should you start to get a jump on using less energy, especially with winter approaching? Here are 12 smart steps to take, courtesy of Canada’s Direct Energy Regulated Services. Start with actions to reduce the amount of energy you need. Then replace existing equipment with more efficient options.

TO SAVE ENERGY THIS FALL…

INSULATE AND WEATHERIZE

1.Upgrade the insulation in your exterior walls, crawlspaces, basements and attics. Many homes don’t have nearly the insulation they need to keep warm air in and cold air out. If you live out west, check with Alberta power companies, for example. Or, check with your local utility in your region to find out how much insulation your home should have to cut down your energy bills.

2.Seal leaky windows and doors. Heat from your home escapes out these cracks. These leaks are easy to seal with weatherstripping around the door and caulking for the windows, available cheaply at your local hardware store.

3. Seal electrical outlets on exterior walls. Some small amount of cold air gets into your house through electrical outlets that are positioned on exterior walls. You can buy pre-cut insulation pads to put behind those outlets, or plastic plugs to place in them when they’re not being used.

REPAIR AND REFIT

4.Clean your chimney, and install an efficient insert. Wood-burning fireplaces send most of their heat up the chimney, rather than into your home. Maybe this year is the year to install an efficient insert that will capture the heat and radiate it back into your house. Clean the chimney to improve air ventilation and reduce risk of fire.

5. Remove window air conditioners. If they must stay in place, seal them with caulking or weatherizing tape and cover them with an airtight, insulated jacket.

6.Cover single-pane windows. Single panes of glass offer almost no protection against cold temperatures. If you have single-panes, see if you can add energy-efficient double-pane windows with inert argon gas fill, warm-edge spacers, and low-e coating. Also hang drapes or curtains in front of windows to provide additional insulation.

7. Check your water heater. If its surface is hot or even warm, some of the energy used to heat the water is being wasted. Check your owner manual to see how to wrap your water heater in an insulating blanket to keep more of the heat inside the tank.

8.Set the water heater temperature reasonably. In Canada, the recommended temperature is between 43 degrees C and 49 degrees C. In the U.S., the Dept. of Energy recommends 120 degrees F.

9.Uncover heating vents. Make sure your heating bents aren’t blocked by furniture or drapes and the dampers are open. Vacuum out dust and pet hair from warm air registers and cold air returns so your furnace runs more efficiently.

REPLACE

10.Replace your furnace with one rated 90% or higher in energy efficiency. If your furnace is getting old, consider replacing it with a newer, more efficient model. Check with your local utility to see if any rebates are available to help cover the cost. Some tax credits may help offset the cost as well.

11.Replace the air filters in the furnace once a month or so. Cleaner air filters help improve the furnace’s efficiency.

12.Replace your standard thermostat with a programmable one. Get a thermostat that you can set to turn down the heat when you leave for work in the morning or go to bed at night. You can also program it to turn up the heat before you get home or wake up. The U.S. EPA reports that doing save can save you anywhere from to 30% on your heating (and cooling) energy bills.

NOTE: Partners and sponsors help us bring you the expertise you need to lead the greener life you want. Our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks!

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Be the hero of your house with these smart ways to save energy room-by-room.
Get the link to the live interactive guide pictured here below.

Trump doesn’t need to speak for you when it comes to fighting climate change. Even though he wants to pull the U.S. out of the Paris Accord, you can show him you disagree by practicing smart ways to save energy at home. How?

1) Continue to acknowledge that climate change is a real threat.

2) Do your own part to save energy.

We’ve teamed up with StarTexPower to bring you 18 smart ways to save energy at home. Just go to this live graphic and click on any room in the house. You’ll get three tips per room to help you save energy at home.

Smart Ways to Save Energy At Home

Keep in mind these important room-by-room tips:

In The Living Room

⇒Seal air leaks around windows and doors.

⇒Change your furnace filter every 3 months.

⇒Adjust your thermostat by 10-15 degrees, especially when you’re away at work or when you go to bed.

Of the $2,000 you probably spend on energy annually, $200 to $400 could be going to waste from drafts, air leaks around openings, and outdated heating and cooling systems, reports Energy.gov.

Save as much as 30% on your energy bill by sealing the leaks.

Remember that dirty filters can slow down air flow and force your furnace to work harder.

Adjusting your thermostat by 10-15 degrees for at least 8 hours a day can cut your heating bill by 5-20% annually.

In Your Bedroom

⇒Use ceiling fans instead of air conditioning. Fans topically cost only 1 cen per day, says StarTex, while making the room feel 3-8 degrees cooler.

⇒Hang insulating drapes to keep rooms cooler during the summer and warmer in winter.

In The Kitchen And Laundry 

⇒Wash full loads.

⇒Replace older appliances, including refrigerators
and washing machines, with Energy Star products

⇒Air dry dishes. Use clothes lines and drying racks to dry clothes

In the Bathroom

⇒Lower the thermostat on your water heater. For every 10 degrees you reduce the temperature, you can save 3 to 5% on your bill.

⇒Take shorter showers.

⇒Switch to water-efficient faucets and shower heads to enjoy the same quality but save energy.

Outside

⇒Plant deciduous trees – the kind that drop their leaves in the fall.

Planting on the west side of the house to create shade and help keep your house cool can reduce your air conditioning costs by up to 30%.

You can find more smart ways to save energy at StarTexPower.com. Look for their hashtag, #energylifehacks.

NOTE: Partners and sponsors enable us to bring you the expert content you want at no cost to you. Our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks!

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If your home needs a new roof, don’t be too quick to automatically assume you should replace the asphalt shingles you probably already have with more of the same. We’ve teamed up with roofing contractor Contractor Quotes to send up a warning flag about asphalt shingles and give you 7 eco-friendly roof options to consider. And of course, always talk to a professional to discuss the best options for you, given your budget, needs, preferences and concerns about the environment.

What’s Wrong With Asphalt?

There are two big problems with asphalt shingles.

One, they are not easy to recycle.

Asphalt shingles may contain asbestos, lead, cadmium and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), among other toxic chemicals.

Even though asbestos is not to have been used in shingle manufacturing since the 1980s, often, one shingle roof is installed directly on top of another. Old shingles that contain asbestos could be found if the old roof is ripped off completely and an entirely new roof installed. Because asphalt shingles contain an amalgam of materials, it can be hard to incorporate them into other products.

The PAHs they contain come from the petroleum products used to manufacture shingles. The PAHs don’t appear to leach out of the shingles themselves. However, PAHs are emitted when the shingles are originally made. Some PAHs are known to cause cancer, says the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

The second problem with asphalt shingles is that they contaminate the water that runs off them. 

Researchers at the University of Michigan College of Engineering found high levels of lead in rainwater that came from the roof. This could be a problem for people who collect rainwater in barrels to water their gardens. It’s also a source of contamination for our groundwater, since so much rain water slides off our roofs, into our gutters, and then into the street and street sewers.

8 Eco-Friendly Roof Options to Consider

Here are 8 eco-friendly roof options that don’t contain asphalt.

White or “Cool” Roof – The aptly-nicknamed “cool roof” consists of a mixture of white gravel and glue. It reflects the sun’s rays, helping your home stay cooler in the summer. Energy Star-qualified cool roofs can lower the roof’s surface temperature by up to 100 degrees F. That could cut your air conditioning use by 10% to 15%.

Wood Shingles – Wood shingles can be made out of reclaimed or recycled wood and last up to 20 years. When it’s time to replace the roof, you can recycle the shingles, lengthening the lifespan of the wood.

Solar Shingles – Shingles made from photovoltaic cells offer an increasingly popular alternative to solar panels mounted on roofs. The shingles, like those pictured above, are cost-competitive with solar panels and can be integrated into the roof so you can barely tell they’re there. Federal and state tax credits offset the cost of the shingles, and you’ll get additional savings – maybe as much as 40% to 60% – because the panels could cut your utility bill so drastically.

Metal Roofs – Metal roofs are very durable and long-lasting. They will reflect the sun’s rays well to help lower your energy bills. The metal can contain a high degree of recycled content and can also be recycled at the end of its life.

Slate Tiles – Slate is so durable, some manufacturers offer a 100 year warranty. You can also use salvaged slate tiles that have been repurposed by the manufacturer.

Clay and Concrete Tiles – Clay tiles are very good at reflecting heat, so will help reduce your utility bills. They are also fully recyclable. One down side of clay tiles is that they can be energy intensive to manufacture. Concrete tiles can look like clay but don’t use quite as much energy to manufacture.

Rubber Roof – A rubber roof is usually made out of reinforced rubber shingles that are manufactured from used steel-belted radial tires. Rubber is very durable and long-lasting. It can be manufactured to look like either slate or shake tiles and can be very beautiful.

Garden/Green Roof – Planting your roof with vegetation can help cool your home, improve insulation, and help clean the air. Green roofs combat the “heat island effect” that raises temperatures in so many cities. And if you opt to plant an actual garden, you can grow food and flowers on your roof, which is terrific if you don’t have any space on your ground-level property.

Questions to Ask When Considering Eco-Friendly Roof Options

Before you buy a roof no matter what kind of roofing materials you’re considering, ask the following questions:

* What is the roofing material made of?

* Is your home’s existing frame strong enough to withstand the roof being proposed?

* How does the roof rate when it comes to Energy Star and LEED, the U.S. Green Building Council standards for eco-friendly building materials?

* How long will the roof last? It should be under a specific warranty for years of performance.

* Will the old roof be recycled?

* What kind of maintenance is required? A “green” roof covered with vegetation will require more maintenance than a roof made of recycled rubber tiles.

* Is the roofing contractor highly experienced and highly rated on sites like Angie’s List, neighborhood listservs, the Better Business Bureau, or other independent sites that verify the quality of the roofer’s work?

If you’ve installed an eco-friendly roof, what did you choose and why?

NOTE: Though we team up with a variety of companies to bring you information and expertise, our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks for any suggestions you have that will help us improve the content we offer you.

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Do your Black Friday shopping spree plans include shopping for a clothes washer, clothes dryer, dishwasher or refrigerator?

If you’re buying appliances on Black Friday, whatever you buy, make sure they carry the ENERGY STAR logo. Here’s why, courtesy of Appliances Connection, a one-stop shop for appliances and a good source for suggestions on how to save energy.

Why ENERGY STAR? Cleaner Air, Lower Bills

After heating and cooling, our homes gobble up the most energy by powering our appliances. Clothes washers, clothes dryers, refrigerators, freezers, stoves and ovens all run on either electricity or, in the case of some stoves and clothes dryers, natural gas.

Most electricity is generated by coal-fired power plants. Burning both coal and natural gas releases carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. This CO2 creates a gaseous blanket over the earth that causes global warming and climate change.

Burning fossil fuels like coal and natural gas also pollutes the air with smoggy particles that can make it difficult for people to breathe. Polluted air causes asthma and other respiratory problems and can increase the chances that someone will have a heart attack.

Appliances that carry the ENERGY STAR logo are independently certified to meet standards established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and its many partners to ensure that appliances perform exceptionally well while saving energy and, in the case of clothes washers, water.

What difference does it make?

Let’s take just one example: Clothes washers.

By the way, many appliances now use this “high efficiency” label. But ENERGY STAR says that, “there are no standards for energy efficiency” associated with it. “Only products that have earned the ENERGY STAR are independently certified to save energy.”

If you buy a clothes washer that is labeled with both ENERGY STAR and the “High E,” make sure you use High E detergent.

Here’s a sample clothes washers that have earned the ENERGY STAR logo.

What Else Should You Look For When Buying Appliances on Black Friday?

• Size – In addition to the ENERGY STAR logo, consider how much capacity you need. If you’re a two-person household, do you need a machine with capacity for 12?
• Energy-Saving Options – Many machines can let you choose different cycles so you can air dry dishes or use a high-spin cycle with clothes to remove most of the water before you put them in the dryer. Dryers may come with moisture sensors so they will shut off when they sense the clothes are dry, rather than keep running for a certain amount of time.
• Ability to Recycle Old Appliances – Many utilities now pay their customers to pick up old refrigerators and air conditioners, then offer a rebate when the customer purchases a more energy efficient model.

Appliances Connection has compiled detailed buying guides that will help you save energy, water, and money as well as purchase the appliance that makes the most sense for you. They offer buying guides for pretty much any appliance you’re buying, as well as for bedroom furniture, mattresses, even sofas.

NOTE: Sponsors help us bring you expert content at no cost to you. We only work with sponsors who meet our criteria for providing eco-friendly products and services. Our editorial opinions remain our own.

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If you’re shopping for a new dishwasher, what are your top concerns?

Noise levels? Color? Price? You might not even put “energy efficient” on the list! And if you do, you might not know how to figure out which dishwasher actually saves energy.

That’s a mistake.

We’re partnering with Constellation Energy to remind you why energy efficiency needs to be a priority when you shop.

We’re also going to tell you what to look for, including the #1 secret that will make sure you get the most efficient model to meet your needs.

But first, why bother?

Dishwashers and other home appliances use a lot of electricity. For most of us that still means we’re relying on polluting fossil fuels like coal for power. And you know what happens every time your local utility burns coal? The air gets dirtier, the atmosphere gets filled with more carbon dioxide, and climate change gets worse.

The less energy your dishwasher uses, the cleaner it is to operate. But that’s not all.

The more efficient it is, the more money it saves on your electric bill, too.

Constellation projects you’ll save up to $35 a year on electricity with a more efficient model – enough to pay for several boxes or bottles of dishwashing detergent.

Plus, an energy-efficient dishwasher offers another benefit that’s good for the environment as well as your pocketbook: it uses less water. Take a look at this graphic from Constellation:

And don’t even think that you can save more energy and water by skipping the dishwasher and washing all your dishes by hand! The EPA reports that a new ENERGY STAR certified dishwasher not only cleans dishes better and kills more germs. It uses less than half as much energy as washing dishes by hand and saves more than 5,000 gallons of water each year. That adds up to big savings, too!

So…how do you know which dishwashers are energy efficient?

The Secret is…Look for those that are ENERGY STAR certified.

ENERGY STAR is a program created by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to motivate manufacturers to build and sell highly efficient appliances like dishwashers. An appliance that bears the ENERGY STAR logo uses a LOT less energy and water than one that does not. According to EPA:

“Standard-size dishwashers that have earned the ENERGY STAR are on average 12 percent more energy efficient and 30 percent more water efficient than those that have not.”

Once you locate energy-efficient dishwashers that bear the ENERGY STAR logo, you can then compare other factors, like how quiet they are when they operate, and what other features they offer that will help you save energy. (Here’s a picture of my own dishwasher; the ENERGY STAR label is right on the inside of the door.)

You can also check the yellow Energy Guide label you’ll see on various machines to compare how much energy each machine is projected to use.

After you get your dishwasher home, Constellation says here’s how you can use it to save energy and water and still get your dishes clean.

For more excellent ways to save energy, visit Constellation here.

NOTE: Our partnerships enable us to provide expert content so you can live the green life you want. Our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks.

The post Here’s the #1 Secret to Buying an Energy-Efficient Dishwasher appeared first on Big Green Purse.

I am not a roofing expert, but I’ve been following tech developments on eco-friendly, energy efficient roofing options. Here is some very useful information about the benefits of installing a metal roof, rather than one composed of shingles, slate, or concrete, sponsored by Global Home, Inc., a company that installs energy-efficient metal roofs. The author, Paul Kazloff, who blogs for Global Home, argues that metal roofs are much more energy-efficient than asphalt shingles, a perspective shared by HowStuffWorks.com, Angie’s List, and Green Building Advisor.

Should your roof be made of metal, or asphalt shingles? Both options have their strong selling points, but the superiority of energy-efficient metal roofs argues in their favor.  Here’s why:

1. Reduce Energy Spending Year-Round with Energy-Efficient Metal Roofs

When people ask about the energy efficiency of a roofing product, what they are really asking is whether a particular roofing solution will help them save money on heating and cooling costs. Reducing your energy bills is a reasonable concern. According to Energy.gov, the majority of American homes use 48% of their energy on heating and cooling, one of the largest expenses for most homeowners by far.

According to the Florida Solar Energy Center, asphalt shingles allow heat to easily transfer from the roof surface into the structure, potentially increasing indoor temperatures by as much as 20 to 25 degrees. In the research, one classroom studied experienced a 25°F decrease in plenum temperatures and a 33% decrease in cooling energy use after the gray asphalt shingle roof was replaced by a white metal roof.

2) Work in Hot or Cold Climates, and Wet or Dry

When comparing asphalt shingles and metal roofs, Diffen.com claims that metal roofs are extremely versatile and perfect for all climates: hot or cold and wet or dry. Asphalt shingles, on the other hand, will work best in temperate climates because they are known to absorb a lot of heat in the summer. (DM note: If you’re buying a new roof and live in a cold climate, check to ensure that your roofing material is designed for the weather you’re likely to experience.)

3) Weight Matters: The Lighter Material Wins

While weight may not be the first thing that comes to mind when energy efficiency is concerned, lighter materials have proven to lose heat faster. According to Sustainability Workshop, lightweight translates to having fewer molecules to store up energy (less thermal mass) and higher insulating tendency. Metal roofs weigh approximately 1.4 pounds per square foot, while asphalt shingles average 2 to 5 pounds per square. The metal will cool down at a faster rate than its asphalt counterpart. As Metal Roof Net points out, heavier materials like slate, concrete, or shingles will retain heat much longer. “The longer they stay hot, the more heat they’ll transfer to the building beneath.”

The fact that asphalt shingles weigh two to three times more than a metal roof means that they are going to accumulate at least two to three times as much heat, observes Metal Roof Net in their article titled “Insulation Value Difference — Metal Roofing vs. Asphalt Shingles.”

In addition, metal roofs can be finished with a heat-reflective ENERGYSTAR coating to further their energy efficiency. White-painted metal roofs, for example, have the highest reflectance value to keep solar heat away from your home.

As How Stuff Work.com concurs, metal roofs that are equipped with ENERGYSTAR reflectance coating can “reflect the sun’s heat away from a building, leading to energy savings of about 50 percent.” Oftentimes, the coating can make the roof surface to be about 100 degrees cooler than on a traditional asphalt roof.

DM Note: If you’re re-roofing your home, consider roofing material when you’re figuring out how to maximize energy efficiency. EPA’s ENERGYSTAR program offers this excellent guide that will help you choose a “cool” roof.

Paul Kazlov is a “green” home remodeling enthusiast and an industry pioneer for innovation in home renovation. Paul writes for the Global Home Improvement blog and strives to educate people about “green” products such as metal roofing and solar energy systems. Follow him on Twitter @PaulKazlov.

Images provided by Global Home, Inc.

NOTE: Sponsored posts enable us to bring you a variety of expert perspectives at no additional cost to you. Our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks!

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DIANE’S ELECTRICITY USAGE …

December 2015         compared to                 JULY  2015
800 KWH ……………………………………….. 1590 KWH

In other words, when I compare the coldest months of the year to the hottest, it’s actually costing me more to cool my home than to heat it.

Summer Energy Conservation Action Steps

Take a look at your own recent electricity bill, especially compared to the colder winter months. Then consider these recommendations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reduce the amount of energy you’re using summer as well as winter.

#1 – Insulate. Check the insulation in your attic, ceilings, exterior and basement walls, floors, and crawl spaces to see if it meets the levels recommended for your area. Insulation is measured in R-values—the higher the R-value, the better your walls and roof will resist the transfer of heat. DOE recommends ranges of R-values based on local heating and cooling costs and climate conditions in different areas of the nation. This map and chart show the DOE recommendations for your area. State and local code minimum insulation requirements may be less than the DOE recommendations, which are based on cost effectiveness. For more customized insulation recommendations, check out this Zip Code Insulation Calculator. It provides insulation levels for your new or existing home based on your zip code and other basic information about your home.

While you’re at it, insulate around cooling and heating ducts to prevent additional energy loss. That step alone could improve your HVAC performance 20%. When choosing insulation, check with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the latest research on home insulation. There are many varieties available, with many health and safety pros and cons. The most common is blown-in or batting fiberglass insulation, but the “off gassing” from the fiberglass has been known to make people sick. Insulation made from denim and cellulose is also available, but some builders question how effective it is. Research is changing all the time, so make sure to read product reviews before you choose.

#2 – Weatherize. Add weather stripping to seal leaky frames around doors and windows. You can buy it in long rolls and cut it to fit without much hassle, especially if you buy the self-adhesive kind. Most hardware stores will carry a variety of weatherstripping, or you can purchase it online here.  

#3 – Change your HVAC air filters. EPA’s EnergyStar program recommends changing air filters at least every three months, though monthly is better, especially in summer and winter, when your heating and cooling systems are working their hardest.

#4 – Use blinds, drapes and curtains. Even after you’ve insulated your windows, keep the sun from coming through them by drawing the curtains or closing the blinds.

#5 – Moderate your indoor air temps using a programmable thermostat. There’s no need to keep your house extremely cool when you go to work or otherwise leave for extended periods of time. A programmable thermostat makes it easy to automatically turn your air conditioning up when you leave for work and down a bit before you get home. One of the best on the market is the NEST thermostat, pictured right.  Here are a few other thermostat options to choose from.

NOTE: Both DOE and my local utility recommend keeping the thermostat at 78 degrees when you’re home in the summer. If you need additional cooling, try a small table top or window fan.

SHOP OUR STORE for more energy-saving products, including programmable thermostats, weatherstripping, fans, power strips, and timers.

RELATED POSTS

Top 10 Ways to Keep Cool When the Planet Heats Up

Top 10 Ways to Save Energy and Money at Home

The post Does it cost you more to cool your home than to heat it? Why summer energy conservation makes sense. appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Living in a condo in the city is actually more environmentally friendly compared to living in a suburb. The United States Environmental Protection Agency reports* that a person who lives in a downtown building uses only a third of the usual energy consumption of a person who lives in a typical suburban community.

So if you’re thinking of downsizing to a condo, or buying a condo instead of a house, that’s probably going to be good new for your pocket book, as you’ll use far less energy heating and cooling your home, and you’ll potentially reduce the amount of gasoline you burn since you may not have to drive as much. But apart from making the condo choice in the first place, what else can you do to save energy and water in your condo?

We’ve teamed up with Mondev Condos, which develops Montreal condos for sale, to offer this list of the 15 best ways to save energy and water in your condo.

Best Ways to Save Energy and Water in Your Condo

1. Install a low-flow showerhead. This ensures you don’t waste water unnecessarily every time you shower.

2. Think 1.6 gallons for your toilet. You don’t need a tank that holds several gallons of water to flush well. 1.6 is the accepted water-saving standard these days. Choose a water-saving toilet when buying new, or displace water in the tank you have using a plastic bottle weighted down with gravel. This way, you’ll use less water every time you flush the toilet.

3. Hang insulated drapes. By covering your windows with cellular blinds or blackout curtains, you’ll be able to lower your heating bills by reducing the amount of hot air coming in through the windows during the summer, and cold air coming in during the winter.

4. Insulate attic, walls, and crawl spaces. These are especially useful for outlets that face an exterior wall. If you put your fingers in front of the outlet, you will be able to feel cold air coming into the room if the outlet isn’t insulated.

5. Compost. Organize a community composting pick-up for your condo complex so all you need to do is collect your kitchen waste, then put it out at the curb for easy collection.

6. Place mobile draft stoppers near your door sill. If you can’t weatherstrip or insulate the door, at least put down a door stopper to block cold air from coming in.

7.  Insulate your windows. Use weatherstripping or caulk you can get at your local hardware store to seal leaky windows.

8. Replace old light bulbs with LED lights. LEDs are the most efficient bulbs on the market. Though they cost a little bit more, they save a lot more energy, and last longer, as well.

9. Switch off your lights and electronics if no one’s home. Often times, people forget to turn off the lights when they leave for work, or even when they’re away for a holiday. You can make this simple by installing sensors in your rooms that will automatically turn the lights off when no movement in the room is detected.

10. Choose ENERGY STAR appliances.  Refrigerators, stoves, microwaves, dishwashers, washing machines, clothes driers, most electronics, and even your HVAC system are all available in highly efficient models. Check ENERGYSTAR.gov before you buy.

11. Install a surge protector to avoid unnecessary spikes in energy use. Power bars also prevent phantom power with just one switch.

12. Repair any leaking faucets and toilets. Leaks make up 13% of home water usage. You can actually do this job yourself – check this video.

13. Install aerators on your faucets and showerhead so you can further save water. You will usually just need to screw it onto the faucet to avoid splashing a stream of water when you open the faucet.

14. Bicycle, Walk, Use Mass Transit. Depending on your proximity to city center, you might be able to get a bike-sharing station set up in your condo complex to link your community to other parts of the city by bike. Even without bike sharing, take advantage of your proximity to work, shopping and entertainment by riding your own bike, walking or using mass transit.

15. Create an organic community garden and set up a farmers market or CSA for your complex. Making it easy to grown your own organic food will save you money and trips to the grocery store. Getting a CSA to deliver pre-reserved bags of locally grown food to your complex will also cut down on how much grocery shopping you need to do while providing a reliable source of delicious fresh fruits, vegetables, baked goods, and in some cases, meats.

Improving the efficiency of your home will not only save you money and help protect the planet. It will also increase the resale value of your property when you finally sell.

*EPA: Location Efficiency and Housing Type: Boiling It Down to BTUs

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What difference does it make if you turn off the lights when you leave a room, install a low-flow shower head, or turn down your water heater a mere 20 degrees? Constellation Energy* shows you exactly why it matters with a cool infographic called 31 Energy Saving Hacks.

These are some of the best energy saving hacks I’ve seen!

Why? Two reasons:

√ One, they cover the major ways you use energy at home: doing the laundry and the dishes, lighting up your rooms and powering your electronics, heating and cooling your home, and showering and bathing.

√ Two, all of them will save you money.

Of the 31 Best Energy Saving Hacks, here are the 5 I like the best (because they’re easy and cost-effective):

1) Skip the rinse on your dishwasher. Using the rinse features costs you 3-7 gallons more of hot water each time you wash your dishes. Wash per usual, then open the door to the dishwasher and pull the wet racks out and let the dishes air dry.

2) Take shorter showers. Cutting just 4 minutes off your shower time can save you over 3,000 gallons of water each year! In a 4-person family, that’s 12,000 gallons.

3) Unplug. You don’t need to keep battery chargers plugged in when the batteries are fully charged. And by the way, unplug other electronics when you’re not using them so they don’t keep drawing power out of the socket (which they do, even when they’re turned off).

4) Clean or replace furnace filters. You find it easier to breathe when your air and nose aren’t obstructed, right? So does your furnace. Give it a clean filter every three months, and breathe easier.

5) Time your water heater. This one never occurred to me before.  You can put a timer on your water heater to turn the heating function down or even off when you’re not home or on vacation. Who knew?

You can see the entire list of Constellation’s energy saving hacks right here.

What’s your favorite energy saving hack? Don’t keep it a secret!

*Note: Sponsored posts allow us to bring you expert content at no cost to you. As ever, our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks!

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What can you actually do to stop climate change? World leaders are meeting this week in Paris to address climate change on a global scale. At Big Green Purse, we focus on what we ALL can do at home and in our communities.

One important step we can take is to embrace the science. There is now near unanimous consensus that climate change is happening. Scientists know burning fossil fuels like coal and oil releases carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. That CO2 creates a gaseous blanket that traps heat between the upper atmosphere and the Earth, causing our planet to heat up. Scientists also agree that nations must transition to fuel from renewable energy sources in order to stop climate change.

Second, we need to switch from coal and oil to energy that comes from the sun, the wind, and other renewable energy resources. Already, the renewable energy industry is growing faster than almost any other industry in the U.S. But we can do more, by purchasing wind power through our local utility company, by installing solar collectors on our rooftops, or by joining community power plans that promote solar and wind.

Third, we can help stop climate change by saving energy at home. Insulating our homes, using energy-saving light bulbs and appliances, using a programmable thermostat, these are all measures within our reach.

Ready to get started?

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