Top ways to easily reduce energy use and lower bills

• During the summer, set the thermostat as high as comfort will permit. The higher the setting, the more energy you save.
• In the cooling season, run kitchen and bath exhaust fans only long enough to rid the house of unwanted water vapor and odors.
• Close heating vents and radiator valves in unused rooms. Make sure that drapes, plants or furniture do not block registers for supply or return air.
• Vacuum clean the condenser coils on refrigerators and freezers (in the back or at the bottom of cabinets) every three months. Dust-covered coils impair the efficiency of compressor operation and increase energy use.
• Do not place uncovered liquids in refrigerators. The liquids give off vapors that add to the compressor workload.
• Expand your family's menus to include stews and other single-dish meals that can be prepared in a slow cooker. Such meals require far less energy than those calling for the simultaneous use of the oven plus two or three surface units.
• Reflector pans beneath stovetop heating elements should be kept bright and clean. Shiny pans help focus heat rays on utensil bottoms; dull or soiled pans absorb heat wastefully.
• Use your microwave oven whenever possible. Microwave ovens draw less than half the power of their conventional counterparts and cook for a much shorter period of time.
• Encourage family members to take showers rather than baths. The average person will use about half as much hot water in a shower as in a bath.
• Provide “task” lighting (over desks, tool benches, sewing tables) so that work and leisure activities can be carried on without illuminating entire rooms.
• Clean lighting fixtures regularly. Dust on lamps and reflectors impairs lighting efficiency.
• Follow detergent instructions carefully. Over-sudsing actually hampers effective washing action and may require more energy in the form of extra rinses.
• Be sure that the dishwasher is full, but not overloaded.
• Screen savers may save screens, but they do not save energy. Make sure that the screen saver does not deactivate your computer's sleep mode. You can set the computer to operate the screen saver, then go into the sleep mode.

Information for this section was provided by Edison Electric Institute.

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