Easy Tips for Energy Savings

Have you ever run into an environmentalist who has an 'all or none' attitude? They are obsessed with perfection and often paralyzed by the same thing! I take a different approach - if a 30% improvement can be gained easily, using readily available technology without a huge investment and I can also convince 10 other people to take the same actions I think I'm doing a better service for the planet. We always need idealists, but physical progress in mass numbers is what we actually need to happen for things to move quickly.

Here are some very basic steps you can take to lessen your impact on the environment and probably save yourself a chunk of money on the way!

1) Replace your lightbulbs.Get energy efficient bulbs. It seems to me LED is the trend that's gathering a lot of traction right now. I'm having a hard time recommending anything with Mercury (CFL's in many cases). Should you swap out CFL's for LED? I can't say this is a great idea, the CFL's are going to end up in the landfill either way, so you may as well use them. The other option is to bring all your old Compact Fluorescents to a family member who still has a pile of incandescent bulbs burning.

2) Insulate. An easy, inexpensive way to conserve is to add insulation. Even if you built new chances are the level of insulation in the attic could be improved. Do some reading for your climate in particular and find out what is recommended for maximum efficiency. The other place to consider insulating is the siding of your house. I recently had my house resided with a shelter wrap type product underneath. The cost was about 10% more, but the gain in efficiency is substantial.

3) Fix leaky water sources. Check your outside taps, baths, sinks, utility areas and toilets. A resolved drip can make a huge impact.

4) Get out the caulking! Sealing air leaks around doors, windows and other openings can go a long way toward decreasing the amount of air leakage.

5) Plan your trips. Gas money is not the best way to spend. Limit your trips to the store, plan when you can and attend errands in the same general part of the city while there for other reasons.

6) Open your curtains. If you find yourself leaving lights on during the day, maybe it's because you have too many curtains closed. Natural light is a better and free alternative during the day.

7) Get an electric mower.I know the cord can be a pain, but there are effective ways to manage this concern. You'll be glad you didn't buy a polluting 2 stroke gas mower when you notice you aren't pouring gasoline all over your shoes and waking up the neighbours with the eardrum breaking noise!

8) Avoid lawn sprays.Many municipalities are now banning certain types of lawn sprays. You know when the goverment finally gets around to banning a product that it must be bad! Save your money and enjoy the status of being the 'new cool'... you can only be 'new cool' with imperfect lawn!

9) Exercise for real.I remember clearly one day I was about to get on my treadmill while training for a marathon. I started it rolling as the lights dimmed due to the strain these machines take on the electrical system. Then I looked outside - it was a beautiful sunny day. Why was I running inside? Get outside and exercise! Another thing to do is pair up your exercise with errands - take your bike shopping, ride to your Mom's place to drop off those photos - you get the idea.

10) Adjust the furnace / AC. A couple degrees up or down can reduce the amount of energy used substantially. Get a programmable thermostat - you have different needs when awake and when sleeping - when you're home and when you're not home.