Landscaping to Save

Posted on November 15, 2011 by grete

Here is a useful tip from energysavers.gov:

Solar heat absorbed through windows and roofs can increase your air conditioner use. Incorporating shading concepts into your landscape design can help reduce this solar heat gain, reducing your cooling costs.

Shading and evapotranspiration (the process by which a plant actively moves and releases water vapor) from trees can reduce surrounding air temperatures as much as 9° F (5°C). Because cool air settles near the ground, air temperatures directly under trees can be as much as 25°F (14°C) cooler than air temperatures above nearby blacktop.

Click the link above to read more about landscaping techniques for your home.

Get Green in the Kitchen

Posted on November 8, 2011 by nrobert

If you’re like most of us, you probably take your dinner plates and put them right in the dishwasher. But, did you know that washing your dishes by hand for 10 minutes can save up to 20 gallons of water? Rather than allowing the water to run as you wash, try filling the sink with, about, 5 gallons of water and do your washing. Then refill the sink with another 5 gallons to rinse.

Each time you run your dishwasher, you’re consuming about 8.7 gallons of water, so make sure to scrape your plates before loading, and only run the dishwasher with full loads.

Washing your clothes can be expensive

Posted on November 1, 2011 by nrobert

We compiled a few tips on ways to save money when doing your laundry.

Tip 1: Wash only full loads of laundry. You could save up to 3,400 gallons of water a year by doing so.

Tip 2: Use the “cold” setting on your washing machine. Using the “hot” setting uses 90% of the machine’s washing energy. By washing on “cold,” you could save up to $400 a year.

Tip 3: Clean your dryer’s lint trap before every load. Cleaning the lint trap on your dryer can save you around $35 a year.

There you have it! Some great ideas on ways to save money when doing your laundry.

Do you really need that Screensaver?

Posted on October 25, 2011 by nrobert

Did you know that your computer screensaver can be a source of energy waste? Your computer’s screensaver requires more energy than having your computer and monitor in low-power (or sleep) mode. Disabling your screensaver could save you between $50 and $100 annually on your electric bill.

This Week’s Green Tip

Posted on October 18, 2011 by nrobert

Here’s a bright idea that can help you save on your monthly power bill. Replace five of your most used incandescent light bulbs with florescent blubs. Florecsent bulbs use 2/3 less energy and last up to ten times longer than incandescent bulbs. This change should result in energy savings of between $25 and $65 a year, depending on usage.

Energy Efficiency appraisal form

Posted on October 13, 2011 by nrobert

The Appraisal Institute has just recently come out with a voluntary energy efficiency appraisal form for appraisers. Some people are saying this form emphasizes to much on the “bling” instead of the actual energy efficiency of a building but hey, it’s a start. The “bling” meaning solar, geo-thermal, and other items added to a home which are most of the time added before making the building more efficient.

An explanation of why adding those items before energy efficiency upgrades could be an issue would be this. Your utility bill is around $140 and you install a 3kW solar array to deduct your utility costs. It lowers your bill down to around $80 at a specific time we will say. That is $60 less than what you normally pay. Now, if you made the building more efficient and your normal bill came to around $80. You then add the same 3kW solar array and your bill would now only be around $20 a month. If you do the math, the original bill was lowered 43% and the energy efficient bill was lowered 75%. Yes you did pay for the upgrades, but now your home or office is more comfortable and you have a lower monthly utility bill. You will also end up saving even more money as your utility rates go up as they most definitely will. Especially in places that have a tiered utility cost structure which Utah does have.

Making your home a little more green

Posted on October 4, 2011 by nrobert

Here is some useful information we found from the Chicago Tribune on ways to make your home more energy efficient.

Did you know your toilet could waste 200 gallons of water a day? On average, 2 in 10 toilets in the United States leak. Those two toilets alone waste as much as 146,000 gallons of water a year. With all that water, a family of four could wash their clothes for the next eight years.

Want an easy way to check if your toilet is leaking? Try adding food coloring to your toilet tank. After 15 minutes, the color should appear, if you have a leak. Be sure to flush the toilet after you’ve identified a leak so you don’t stain your toilet bowl.

Lower Your Energy Bills – Simple Step

Posted on September 20, 2011 by nrobert

Have you ever heard of the Kill A Watt EZ from P3 International? It is a very handy tool that anyone can use to find out how much power your appliances are using. It will show you the operating cost of each appliance individually. You can also view the weekly, monthly, and yearly potential costs. All you have to do is plug the small box into a wall jack and then plug your appliance into it. It’s that simple! It’s an easy great way to pin point which items are costing you the most money in your home. We picked ours up at Lowe’s but you should be able to get them at any hardware store.

Safety, Comfort, & Savings

Posted on September 15, 2011 by nrobert

Wasatch Solar Energy has the word Safety in its slogan because we make sure the homes and businesses that we test are free from gas leaks and carbon monoxide spillage. These tests are of the highest priority. We want to make sure all occupants are safe before and after any retrofits (i.e. changes) are completed. Any changes made to the building envelope (i.e. air barrier) can cause different pressures inside the building. These pressure differences can cause carbon monoxide spillage into the living space which can harm or even kill the occupants.

We have the word Comfort in our slogan because by following the energy efficiency steps we provide in our energy analyses your home or office will become more comfortable. These steps can cut down cold spots or temperature differences inside the building. You will have lower utility bills and more money to spend towards the things you really want to do.

Savings is very important to people. We can help you achieve savings if the steps we provide are followed.

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