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Posted on: June 8, 2011

Dial It Down a Bit, Will Ya?

Try these no-cost alternatives that will help you dial back energy usage

By Afi-Odelia E. Scruggs
CTW Features

Take it outside: Grilling in the hot summer months keeps the house cooler than cooking on the stove. Just make the sure the grill isn't too close to the house, or the heat from the grill will waft inside. Image courtesy Weber

When it comes to conserving energy, especially in the summer, home energy auditor Mike Rogers hopes Americans remember a time before air conditioning was ubiquitous. That's when folks kept cool by turning on fans, drawing blinds and cooking light.

"If you dial the clock back 50 years, most people didn't have air conditioning. You had to do simple, smart things, which are inexpensive. I think we've forgotten that over time," says Rogers, the vice president of GreenHomes America (greenhomesamerica.com), based in Syracuse, N.Y. The company conducts home energy assessments and retrofits houses in 10 states.

"You don't need to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to make your home more energy efficient and save money on your utility bill," says Andrew Schrage, co-owner of personal finance site Moneycrashers.com.

Jason Holstine gives the same advice to customers of Amicus Green Building Center (amicusgreen.com) in Kensington, Md. Think about "spring greening" and put together a list of ways to conserve energy without fancy new technology. His suggestions, as well as tips from others, include:

Turn up the thermostat

Holstine suggests keeping the house between 76 to 79 degrees when at home and busy. Go up to 80 degrees at night and 82 degrees when the house is empty or when on vacation.

Use a programmable thermostat to maintain a higher temperature when away from home, and lower it just before homeowners return. "The more you can turn that off, the more energy you will save," Rogers says.

Cut off standby power

Pressing the off switch on a television or microwave doesn't mean the appliance is disconnected. They're working at a lower rate but still sucking up energy in the process.

According to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a plugged-in CD player averages 4.11 watts when it's not being used, compared to 6.8 watts when it's on. The costs work out to roughly $4 a year when the appliance is off, to $6 per year when it's running. Although that doesn't seem like much electricity or money, the average home has 40 products constantly drawing power. The laboratory estimates standby power accounts for 10 percent of home energy use.

So unplug appliances that aren't frequently used, and make sure to disconnect battery and telephone chargers from the wall outlet. Or, plug products into smart power strips that shut off power when a device seems to be idle.

Let Mother Nature help

If the weather outside is cool and comfortable, open windows to let the breeze in. Or open the windows at night, then get up early and close them. The cool air will be trapped in the house.

Instead of running the clothes dryer, which can heat up a residence, Schrage recommends hanging clothes to dry. Be careful though, of drying wet clothes indoors on humid days. The moisture from the clothes increases humidity, which makes for a warm, sticky interior.

Keep it cool

On hot days, either cook light or grill outdoors, away from the building. Turn off lights when they're not in use; not only do they waste energy, they warm up the house and make the air conditioning work harder. Draw the blinds and curtains on sunny days to keep cool air in and the hot sun out.

Use a microwave and a dishwasher

According to the California Energy Commission, a microwave uses two-thirds less energy than a stove, and it doesn't add heat to a house. A dishwasher uses less water than hand washing but only if the appliance is full. Let dishes air dry to keep the house or apartment cool.