Retrofitting for Energy Conservation

Here are some more ways to save energy. They can also be used in large buildings.

131. Use the extra heat left over after cooking in the oven to do other tasks such as rising bread or warming food.

132. Homes with basements can save on their heating and cooling bills by providing extra insulation in the basement.

133. Run the dishwasher in the evening and open the door overnight so the dishes can drip dry.

134. Plant shade trees in the yard, by roadways and in vacant lots.

135. Comb the fins on the air conditioning condenser outside when they are mashed or disfigured to improve the heat exchange rate of the unit.

136. Use smaller appliances such as pressure cookers, woks or broiler ovens instead of the full oven when cooking small portions.

137. If you leave a room for more than 15 minutes turn off the lights and other appliances such as radios or televisions being used.

138. You can turn off the oven or stove a few minutes before an item is finished cooking and the residual heat will finish the job.

139. Most electrical appliances, such as motors, lights and electronic components generate heat that puts an extra burden on air conditioning.

140. Tenant sub-metering is an effective energy conservation measure for large building owners.

141. Enroll your company in the EPA's Green Lights program and learn how you can save on your utility bill.

142. Purchase an inexpensive light meter and tailor the lighting throughout the office or business to the minimum lighting requirements. Most places are overlit - especially rooms with daylighting - and can benefit from lower wattages lamps.

143. Reduce the exterior nighttime lighting for your business to the minimum for safety and publicity.

144. Have building cleaning and maintenance personnel work during the day rather than at night when the air conditioning and lights must be on specifically for their activities.

145. Home photovoltaics are an option for remote houses or equipment sheds.

146. Organizations that foster telecommuting report substantial productivity gains.

147. Proper light, of an appropriate level to the task performed can boost morale, productivity and general feeling of wellbeing.

148. Don't open the refrigerator or freezer until you are sure what you will be getting. Keep a list of contents posted on the door with an inventory of contents.

149. Close off air vents and keep the doors closed to rooms that are seldom used to save on air conditioning and heating costs.

150. Reduce the risk of ocular problems by designing offices and workstations to provide the optimum light at the work surface.

151. Use drapes and awnings to reduce the heat transferred through windows by closing them when a space is not currently in use. Even partially closed vertical or horizontal blinds help.

152. Multi level light bulbs are energy savers if they are used at the lowest wattage whenever possible.

153. Recycle magazines, notepaper and computer printouts along with the newspaper. Or bring them by your health club or doctor's office.

154. Turn upper floor office lighting and accent lighting at night to reduce light pollution.

155. Gravel, rock and asphalt surfaces prevent rain from soaking through to the water table and aquifer. Plant grass or ground cover where possible to help preserve an ecological balance.

156. Find out if your business is charged a peak demand charge by the electric utility company and investigate ways to reduce that expense.

157. Building operators can save money by operating only one elevator on weekends and at night.

158. Interlocking security lighting with a motion sensor instead of an on-off switch or even a photocell will reduce the cost of operating it and give notice of intruders.

159. Dimmers can reduce the cost of lighting and cause a more healthy and effective lighting level, especially in spaces with several different functions.

160. Multiple switching of fluorescent ceiling fixtures can save energy by turning on only as many lamps in each fixture as is necessary for adequate illumination.

161. Reduce your use of electric appliances such as hole punchers, pencil sharpeners and copy machines.

162. Turn the pilot flame of the furnace off at the end of the heating season so it does not burn all summer long unnecessarily.

163. Plant wildflowers in vacant lots, roadsides and other public areas so that the grass will have to be mowed less frequently.

164. Conserve paper around the office by making fewer copies and by using electronic storage and communication methods.

165. Post general office notices on a bulletin board instead of circulating notices to each individual.

166. Variable speed motors and controls on air handling units can save on cooling and heating costs.

167. Replace fluorescent lamp ballasts with electronic ones and save.

168. Buildings that have a hot water circulating system can save by turning the circulating pump and water heater off at night and on weekends.

169. Donate old appliances, tools and electronics to charitable groups so they can repair them for the less fortunate.

170. Recycle newspapers and save trees. They say that every Sunday edition of the New York Times uses a whole tree.

171. Rehang misaligned windows and replace windows with broken or cracked panes.

172. Reduce the quantities of air exhausted from kitchens, restrooms and laboratory vent hoods as much as practicable.

173. For restrooms that exhaust constantly disable the air supply and let the space be conditioned by return air drawn in by the exhaust fan.

174. Use a high efficiency filter for the air conditioning system to protect the fan, motor and air distribution system from build up of dust and dirt that reduce efficiency.

175. Adjust exterior doors to minimize the crack all around so that air infiltration is minimized.

176. Keep the refrigerator coils free of ice build up by defrosting at regular intervals.

177. Water lawns early in the morning and long enough for a deep soak to encourage deep root growth.

178. Fluorescent lighting is five times more efficient as incandescent.

179. Spores and microbes can collect in carpet, furniture and drapes and impair the quality of the air indoors. Clean these items regularly.

180. Businesses can save by turning the AC off at night or by setting it back a few degrees.

181. Inadequate ventilation in an office or home can result in the "sick building" syndrome and possible illness to people within.

182. Insulate the tubing from the air conditioning condenser outside to the fan and heat exchange coils inside.

183. Thaw frozen foods in the refrigerator to take advantage of their low temperature.

184. Preheat the oven for baked goods only and don't preheat sooner than is necessary.

185. Recycle building materials such as bricks, masonry, timber, steel and ceramic tiles.

186. The aluminum industry consumes 1.4% of all the world's total energy. Recycle aluminum cans and other items.

187. Recycle wood and wood products into chips for firing furnaces or for composite wood products.

188. Landscape shading of walls and roof will conserve on summer utility bills.

189. Purchase efficient heat pumps for your home or business.

190. Solar hot water heaters are a renewable energy resource.

200. Reduce lighting levels for non-critical tasks. Purchase an inexpensive light meter to check light levels against the standards.

201. Install locking thermostats in office areas to prevent tampering with the settings.

202. Concrete accounts for two thirds by weight of North America's demolition waste.

203. Recycled steel comprises 66% of the new steel in the United States.

204. Isolate storage rooms from occupied spaces and do not condition the air to them at all if possible.

205. Turn off portable space heaters and fans when they are not needed and when the room is not occupied.

206. Inspect all automatic doors for proper functioning. It is especially important that they close completely to minimize any air infiltration.

207. Develop an after hours equipment check list by custodial and security personnel to ensure that all unnecessary equipment such as lights, typewriters and computers are not left on.

208. Adjust the temperature control on the refrigerator and freezer to the warmest practical temperature.

209. Locate the refrigerator away from the stove, a heating vent or where the sun will shine directly on it.

210. Be sure there is enough clearance at the back of the refrigerator for air to circulate. The coils are heat exchange devices that transfer heat from the unit to the air by way of a circulating fluid inside.

211. Store only foods that must be refrigerated in the icebox.

212. Keep foods covered tightly to reduce moisture buildup in the icebox. It takes more energy to cool humid air than dry air.

213. Wipe moisture from bottles and cartons before putting them in the refrigerator to be sure they do not add to the latent load.

214. Establish rules and post them asking everyone to keep outside doors closed and to use them only as necessary.

215. Cover the fresh air intake for through-the-wall air conditioning units when they are not used for a season to keep air from entering.

216. Interlock restroom exhaust fans with the lights and control the lights with an occupancy sensor/switch combination so they operate only when the room is in use.

217. Install a thermostat to control the attic fan so that it operates only when the temperature is ten or more degrees above ambient.

218. Partially close attic vents and louvers in the winter so that warm air will remain in the ceiling space and not escape and be replaced with cold outside air. (allow for some ventilation)

219. Purchase vent hoods that introduce a percentage of air as untreated outside air instead of exhausting 100% of conditioned air from the space. Existing vent hoods can sometimes be modified with this option for great savings.

220. Gasket the bottom of all garage type doors if they enclose a conditioned space.

221. Check the refrigerator door gasket and replace it if it is not sealing tight.

222. Use heat tracing to keep hot water piping warm and adequately insulate the lines.

223. Reuse old file folders, dividers and manila folders in the office by using new labels.

224. Reduce the use of internal heat generating office equipment such as lights, computers and copying machines during the summer in exterior zones and all year long in interior zones.

225. Turn all central HVAC equipment off by a fixed timeclock schedule.

226. Cooking with lids on pots and pans can reduce by half the heat required.

227. Don't use hot water to rinse the kitchen dishes.

228. Colored clothes do not have to be washed in warm or hot water. This wastes energy and causes the colors to fade.

229. Clean the lint trap of the clothes dryer regularly to maximize the air flow within the machine.

230. Keep indoor shading devices clean so they can work properly.

231. Consider replacing the pilot lights of gas burning furnaces and water heaters with electronic ignition devices.

232. Natural light can be reflected deep into a room by reflective sills, blinds and other architectural features to supplement artificial

lights.

233. Keep auto mufflers and exhaust systems in good repair to reduce emissions and to keep the miles per gallon high.

234. Operate kitchen exhaust hoods only when the cooking surfaces are actually in use.

235. Designate an energy monitor at the office.

236. It is important to provide adequate ventilation when using kerosene space heaters or wood burning stoves. There must be sufficient oxygen available for complete combustion and the products of combustion must be vented from the occupied space.

237. Use paints and toxic chemicals in a well ventilated space.

238. Blue flames on a gas stove mean it is not adjusted right. The flames should be yellow.

239 Ground source heat pumps are efficient and environmentally friendly.

240. Electronic dimmers can cause harmonic distortion in a building's power distribution system. Avoid using them where equipment is sensitive to the quality of power.

241. Calibrate thermostats so they maintain the right set point.

242. Adjust the ceiling diffusers to spaces that are over or underheated. If the diffuser is not adjustable, replace it with one that is.

243. Post signs near thermostats to remind people of the ideal setting.

244. Consider automatic door closers on swinging exterior doors.

245. Relocate thermostats if they are near outside walls, in seldom used areas, near heat sources or in a draft. The best position is near the return air grill on an inside wall.

246. Thermally seal all unused windows.

247. Add reflective or heat absorbing glazing to windows. They diminish the natural daylighting but can reduce the solar heat gain substantially.

248. Reflective materials on the window side of draperies reflects solar heat when the curtains are closed.

249. If roof insulation cannot be added, then put it at the top floor ceiling.

250. Painting ceiling and walls with a lighter and more reflective paint, ceiling tiles or floor coverings will increase the light level in a room.

251. Wash windows frequently to take best advantage of daylighting.

252. Replace light fixture lenses that have become yellow or hazy with age with a clear acrylic lens that will permit the most light to pass.

253. Water indoor plants more often in the winter because central heating dries the air out.

254. Purchase an energy efficient home or upgrade your older home with the latest energy conserving materials and equipment.

255. Keep a kettle simmering on the oven to raise indoor humidity in the winter for increased comfort. You will also be able to turn the thermostat down a few degrees and still be comfortable.

256. Move desks and work surfaces to take advantage of daylighting.

257. Use room and area lighting only when it is needed.

258. Increasing light levels in a cool room in cold weather may improve the occupant's perceived comfort.

259. Arrange work surfaces so that sidewall daylighting crosses the task at a perpendicular angle to the line of vision.

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