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Energy Conservation Energy conservation is the foundation of energy independence. Thomas H. Allen

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  #21 (permalink)  
Old 5th-June-2006, 04:01 PM
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Water saving devices:

http://www.peterton.co.uk/index.html make a retro fit systm for old toilets to use less water (no not a brick!). Gives you 3 settings.

Waterbutts:
For that old fashioned look, try a barrel used for maturing spirits from here:
www.oak-barrel.co.uk


Re dishwashers:
Article in Environment Agancy magazine states that:
10-30L per wash for an eight place setting
10-50L per wash for a 12 place setting.
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Old 8th-June-2006, 06:57 PM
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Lighting is an important factor and we now have LED lighting that is more efficient than CFL's.

I found a cheap supplier when you talk to him nicely, he makes about 300% profit so barter hard!

www.efficientlight.co.uk

You can also create your own power if you have the space:

http://www.angelfire.com/ak5/energy21/microsavonius.htm

http://www.provenenergy.com/

http://www.segen.co.uk/eng/index.htm

Just a couple for you to check out if interested.
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Old 16th-June-2006, 11:24 AM
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Another forum worth looking at for issues regarding energy in the home is:
http://www.greenbuildingforum.co.uk/forum/

Full of people who really know what they're talking about.
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Old 12th-July-2006, 02:10 AM
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Drive a diesel car rather than than petrol/gasoline. They get much better fuel mileage. I believe the VW Lupo gets 94 mpg. It is not available in the States of course. My VW Jetta gets 49 mpg (US gallon). Combine trips to avoid driving more than necessary.
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Old 9th-October-2006, 08:15 AM
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Learn the correct way to check your car tires (tyres for those of you in the UK) and do it at least monthly. Over the life of the tires, your fuel savings will probably exceed the cost of the tires. It will also keep you safer on the road. But do learn how to do it right. Checking them after you've been driving, for instance, will give you a false reading. For that reason you might also want a hand pump so you can bring them up to the right pressure at home, before you set out.




Remember that all appliances produce heat. (All forms of energy eventually degenerate to heat energy.) A 60 watt light bulb adds as much heat per hour to your house as a 60 watt heater. Even a refrigerator produces heat equal to the wattage it draws from the mains. Appliances don't necessarily put the heat where you want it , so the contribution to home heating isn't necessarily as efficient as your heating system, but they do put the heat into your home. So "energy savings" claims may be exaggerated if you are consuming energy to heat your house most of the year anyway.

On the reverse side, if you use air conditioning, then the energy cost of your appliance use is more than doubled. Because air conditioning can't be 100 % efficient, your a/c will consume slightly more than an extra 60 watt hours to remove the extra heat produced by having a 60 watt bulb on for an hour. Double the cost of leaving the fridge door ajar, leaving the computer on, etc.

We like to air dry some of our clothes in the basement. In winter, we don't want high humidity to cause mould and mildew in colder parts of the basement, so we run a small dehumidifier in the laundry area. This does not not carry an appreciable energy cost, if any at all, because the energy consumed by the dehumidifier simply takes that much load off the baseboard heater. What it does do, is allow us to reduce the use of the electric clothes drier, and keep the energy in the house.
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Old 9th-October-2006, 08:25 AM
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The obvious: dress reasonably warmly in the house.

In some areas, an overhead infrared heater can be used to warm "you" instead of heating the whole space quite so much. e.g. in the bathroom, or in an unheated workshop. Be sure to follow codes.
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Old 14th-January-2007, 09:07 PM
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Take a hot water bottle to bed and turn off the heating.
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Old 27th-July-2007, 07:46 PM
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Use hot water for other required tasks before taking a shower so that less water is used while waiting for it to heat up in the shower. Works like a charm.
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Old 27th-September-2007, 08:37 PM
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Replace those old appliances. You wouldn't believe how much less electricity new appliances use than your old ones. In some cases, you can make the money back on the new purchase within a year or so because you save so much on electricity.

Don't use mini-fridges. They use about the same amount of electricity as a small full size fridge does. I know some people who have 2 or 3 mini-refrigerators in their homes. When you total up the electricity from those, the y could have two full-size fridges and use less!

There are sites that help you to figure out how much power your current appliances and electronics use, so you can compare with newer ones to see whether you want to replace them. If you need help with this, check out the site below.
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Old 11th-October-2007, 10:26 AM
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ride a bike
i started riding a bike a year ago and its my favourite bit of the day.
i think most people see it as a hassle, but its great, and i get to my studio faster than if i got the bus or the tube (i can't drive, but its faster than that too).
i painted mine green the other day for the london freecycle event, and put a big flag on it
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