July 27, 2010
Top Tips For Energy Conservation At Home
One of the hottest topics at the moment regards our impact on the environment. As such, we are all looking at ways to cut back on the amount of energy we use. As with many things, this energy conservation begins at home. Here is a selection of top tips to help you cut down accordingly.
Two of the biggest wastes of energy in the home are inefficient use of heating and cooling systems so, as a first step, ensure these are well maintained. Secondly, try notching your thermostats down a degree or two; you shouldn’t feel the impact too much physically but you sure will financially. Also ensure your air conditioning unit has good airflow, and any obstructions are removed.
Household appliances are also big users of energy, notably washers and dryers. Ideally, washing should be line dried in the fresh air. This obviously is a big saver, but also adds certain freshness. If the dryer does have to be used however, try and do loads so that one load goes in as soon as another finishes. This helps to retain heat in the dryer and saves energy.
Another appliance that eats up energy is the refrigerator. There are not too many people that clean the rear of their refrigerators all too often but, if this is done weekly or at least monthly, dust will be kept to a minimum and the refrigerator will operate much more efficiently. Also, the seal around the doors should be checked often to ensure there are no leaks wasting energy.
Ovens and stoves should also be well maintained; dust, grease and grime reduce efficiency and vary the cooking temperatures produced dramatically. It is also worth having a thermometer to use in an oven to get the exact temperature, as LED displays are not always accurate. A side benefit of the thermometer is that you will likely find that your food cooks better.
These are only a few basic steps to help get you started with home energy conservation. Once started, you are sure to find many other areas you can cut back on or make more efficient. Not only are you helping to do your small bit for society, but your bank balance will look a whole lot better too.
LEED Certified and Green Technology, Energy Edge Technologies can help save your Industrial, Hospital, Grocery Store or any other high energy commercial buildings massive amounts of money! We Take A Full Facility Approach or call 888-729-5722 Ext. 100.
Filed under Blog by John Gerace, PhD, PE
July 24, 2010
Tips For A Lower Electric Bill
When you are living on a budget and trying to cut costs, lowering your monthly bills is definitely one of the first things that comes to most of our minds. We try to figure out how we can spend less money on food, how we can cut transportation costs, and how we can make our utility bills lower.
Everyone would like to have a lower electric bill. Here are a few things you could do to try and cut down on the amount of electricity you use, and therefore make your bill more manageable.
Turn out your lights when you are not using them. Make sure that when you leave the house, you leave on the minimum number of lights necessary. You may need to leave on one or two for safety reasons, to make the house look occupied or to be able to see when you get home. But you do not need to leave all of the lights in the house on.
Set your computer to an energy-saving mode. All computers can be adjusted so that they go into sleep mode when they are not used for a certain amount of time. This will allow you to save energy without having to re-boot your computer each time you want to use it.
Unplug your cell-phone charger when it is not in use. Even if there is no phone attached, your charger is still using electricity if it is plugged in.
Install energy-saving light bulbs. They will help you to cut costs even when the lights are on.
If you have children, set limits on the number of electrical devices they may use at once. No one needs to have the television, the computer, and the radio all on at the same time.
These are a few of the ways that you can save energy and help lead your household toward a lower electric bill. This will contribute to your efforts to save money in all areas of your budget.
LEED Certified and Green Technology, Energy Edge Technologies can help save your Industrial, Hospital, Grocery Store or any other high energy commercial buildings massive amounts of money! We Take A Full Facility Approach or call 888-729-5722 Ext. 100.
Filed under Blog by John Gerace, PhD, PE
July 18, 2010
Options For Corporate Energy Efficiency
There are several rankings and benchmarks for corporate energy efficiency and corporations can perform an energy audit to see where they can improve with their energy usage. Corporations should look into how many kilowatts they use per square foot and how much gas or BTUs are used per square foot. Each country will have average values and recommended values for being efficient.
If you are looking to improve your company’s energy usage you can look into the different products available as each vendor will have information about its products’ energy consumption. For example, glass companies will provide information on their products’ solar heat gain and U-value, and so on.
Many more corporations are creating positions that deal specifically with energy management and many times there is compensation or benefits for those corporations that have good energy performance. There are several different ways in which corporations can make changes to their energy usage and ultimately enjoy big energy savings.
You want to make sure that your building is properly maintained as this keeps it running as efficiently as possible. Small changes can actually cause big changes in energy consumption. One such example is not running the air conditioning at night if no one is in the building. Also you can go through a retro-commissioning process to get your building back to its original state.
Steam systems are frequently an issue with energy usage as they are not maintained well. Steam traps tend to be used to deal with condensation but these can easily become stuck open and transfer the steam back into the boiler. This wastes a lot of heat as the steam goes back into the system and does not heat the building. You need to make sure these are replaced regularly and maintained well.
You also want to optimize your HVAC systems and these can account for 20 percent or more of all energy used in a building. And lastly, you might want to look into thermal energy storage or heat recovery options.
Save Money On Your Company’s Energy Bill, visit Energy Edge Technologies site for strategies on saving a tremendous amount of capital on your Corporate Energy Bill or call 888-729-5722 Ext. 100.
Filed under Blog by John Gerace, PhD, PE
Office buildings are significant energy consumers using an average of 17 kWh of electricity and 32 cubic feet of gas per square foot. Moreover, industry data indicates that energy costs are 20% of the typical facility’s annual operating budget.
As energy costs continue to increase, businesses are discovering the tremendous financial, operational and competitive value of energy cost reduction and improved energy efficiency.
Because HVAC and lighting comprise 65% of combined energy use in office buildings (47% and 18% respectively), they are where you should initially focus your energy reduction efforts. By centering on these key areas, companies have significantly improved energy efficiency while maintaining or improving occupant / employee comfort and productivity.
Because each facility is relatively unique, using a carefully planned “whole facility” approach, allows you to be confident that you are making the best, most financially and operationally prudent energy efficiency choices. You will find there are proven and recommended engineering approaches and technologies available that can guarantee results and by working with an experienced, energy services company or engineering firm, choosing the right options does not need to be complicated. Deciding where and how to begin can be fairly straightforward. The best first step is always to focus on quick, low cost or no cost solutions. This can include training staff to turn lights off when they leave unoccupied rooms, using occupancy sensors in offices, conference rooms, etc., using sleep mode settings for computers and other electronics when not in use, setting back thermostats during overnight and closed hours and having the HVAC systems serviced and cleaned on a regular basis. After you’ve addressed the “low hanging fruit”, next steps can involve choosing from a variety of longer term options that are designed to deliver much greater energy savings. Options should be considered based on their proven track record of success, whether they are “approved” or “recommended” by organizations such as Energy Star, US DOE, USGBC, IEEE, etc., their cost effectiveness and return on investment as well as their consistency with your company’s goals and culture. Some of the best options for office buildings include lighting upgrades to high efficiency fluorescent, CFL and/ or LED, use of occupancy sensors and day-lighting opportunities, sine wave modification for outdoor lighting circuits, liquid pressure amplification for central chiller plants, anti-compressor short cycling for roof top units, use of variable frequency drives, building management systems, reflective roof coatings and possibly equipment replacement for older equipment that is approaching the end of its useful life.
As you proceed with implementing energy efficiency measures, know that you don’t have to do it alone. There are experienced firms that can help make recommendations and provide turnkey services for you. In choosing a partner to guide this type of “whole facility” approach for you, it is important to look at a number of factors. You may want to ask the following: What is their level of experience using these various technologies, do they use proven and recommended approaches, what are the credentials of their staff, are they members of key industry organizations, what is their level of knowledge of your industry, do they offer a free initial evaluation and do they offer guarantees at each step of the process. Remember, the sooner you begin, the sooner you start saving your organization’s valuable and limited resources and improving your company’s profitability!
Save Money On Your Company’s Energy Bill, visit Energy Edge Technologies site for strategies on saving a tremendous amount of capital on your Corporate Energy Bill or call 888-729-5722 Ext. 100.
Filed under Blog by Robert Holdsworth
June 27, 2010
Options For Saving By Using Renewable Energy
There are many different types of renewable energy that can be used in place of energy created by burning fossil fuels. Renewable energy is generated from geothermal heat, sunlight, tides, rain and wind. All of which will naturally replenish. Currently only about 20% of the worlds energy consumption uses natural energy sources.
One of the cleanest and most efficient types of renewable energy is wind power which is slowly gaining in popularity and usage. Wind power is seen more in Europe though many countries are building off shore wind farms. Only a light breeze is needed to generate power and the energy conversion is one of the most efficient of all renewable sources.
Renewable energy is not only being used in large scale production but many can be scaled down to use for small grid or even residential use. The best example of this would be solar power. Solar power takes the suns light and converts it to electricity using solar cells. Solar can easily supplement current electricity usage and some business and people are finding that they no longer pay an electricity bill after conversion to solar power.
Hydropower has been used for years via construction and operation of dams. Most people are familiar with Hoover Dam which is the largest hydropower station in the world. As water flows from a high spot to a low spot it gives off energy which can be transformed into different types of power such as electrical. You also can use hydropower without dams in rivers and oceans as long as there is a current or tide.
Biofuels are mainly based on bioalcohol or bioethanol. This fuel is produced from fermenting soy or sugar that comes from plants. This pure form can then be used instead of gasoline. Biodiesel is an oil made from animal fat, vegetable oils and recycled grease. Although these fuels when burned produce emissions, they are much cleaner than the traditional petrol.
So now that you know, consider how you can make changes and choices to take advantage of these alternatives.
Save Money On Your Company’s Energy Bill, visit Energy Edge Technologies site for strategies on saving a tremendous amount of capital on your Corporate Energy Bill or call 888-729-5722 Ext. 100.
Filed under Blog by John Gerace, PhD, PE
In our current world economy, we are all trying to find ways to lower our monthly bills. All of us want to learn how to spend less money on food, ways to lower our transportation costs, and ways to lower our utility bills. We all would like to reduce the amount of money we pay for electricity and other energy sources. There are many things you can do to improve the energy efficiency of your home, and save money in the process.
Turn out your lights when you are not home. When you leave the house, leave on as few lights as possible. For safety reasons, lots of people like to leave on a light or two, but make sure that you do this only when it is absolutely necessary.
Make sure your house is properly insulated. This will help the house to maintain higher temperatures and reduce the amount of heat energy necessary during the winter.
If your computer or other appliances have an energy-saving mode, make sure that you choose this setting.
Unplug your cell-phone charger when you are not using it. If you leave it plugged in while it is not charging anything, you are wasting electricity.
Install fluorescent light bulbs. They use much less energy than traditional light bulbs. Also, make sure that your house has windows and skylights that allow you to optimize your use of daylight.
Limit the number of electrical devices you are using at once. If you have the television on, turn off the computer. If you are listening to the radio, make sure the television is not on. This is good for peace of mind as well as cutting costs.
These are just a few ways that you can save energy. You also might consider having an energy efficiency expert evaluate your home to figure out other ways you could cut down on your energy use. This will benefit the environment and your budget!
Save Money On Your Company’s Energy Bill, visit Energy Edge Technologies site for strategies on saving a tremendous amount of capital on your Corporate Energy Bill or call 888-729-5722 Ext. 100.
Filed under Blog by William Poulos


