You can also save a lot of money on AC if you use white roofing materials. They make some that are energy-star rated with tiny reflective beads that can actually get you government rebates. Check it out with your local utility or roofing provider. We lowered our summer electric bills by about 15% and ended up paying the same for the more expensive energy-star material as we would have with the ordinary stuff due to rebates. If your roof is in good shape, there are now special paints you can apply to reduce heat absorption.

Here is the number to call if you live in any of those states:
614-874-SAVE (7283)

Take showers before your scent becomes offensive. This will take some figuring out, depending how active you are, how your body works, etc. Besides, wasn’t it
in fashion not too long back in france? the shower thing?

Don’t drive, bike. Simple!

turn off everything and live as though your homeless, with a home, for a while just to get a taste of how it
might feel to crash in an abandoned building…

Don’t check your mail more then once per month. That
way you get all the bad news all at once, instead of little tortures, little kills. Just do it right!

If anything gets way past over-due, don’t worry it, your credit it jacked-up anyway…

Try and climb up your chimney and see if you can hook up
to your neighbors cable somehow to yours…you know, just attach some wires to their…shouldn’t be to difficult.

Go over your relatives for dinner and lunch….sleep breakfast off…

Suck gas out your neighbors at exactly 3 am…this you can accomplish with a pipe device, sucking gas out to container and gas up..

Apply for all gov., state, county aid…now!

Get your second and third edd extensions, before they do the fourth..

put car on neutral downhills…its just like a high-bread!

donate blood, sperm, kidney and an eye.

start fighting in the undergound scene…lots of money I hear…

Find a rich girlfiend! even if your a girl, find a rich girlfriend…

meet people at your place, not half way. but don’t invite them over, say you’ve moved and this is your meeting place.

get metro phone service. This way, you can have txt, web, cell, worldwide calling, family plan meaning four phones at only ninety one dollars!

rend movies from the library! its free (but if your late, damn people charge you 1 dollar a day, and if you’ve rented seven movies and your late, then it defeats the purpose!)

anyway, hope I’ve been of some assistance

I know some of what I’ve share from my wealth of experience isn’t directly related to energy consumption but it all boils down to saving money…correct?

peace

For me this translates into only being on for 6 hours each day when I might use them.

2. On hot sunny days make sure you draw all your shades closed, especially on the southern side of your house. This will help keep the inside cooler. In the winter, do the opposite, let as much sun light in as possible.

3. If you water your lawn/garden, get a rain barrel (or two) and hook it up to your down spouts. Use the accumulated rain to water the lawn/garden on dry days.

4. While you might not want to drink the “cold” water that initially comes from the hot water line, there are many other useful things you can do with it: poor it into the washing machine to be used with the next load, add it to your rain barrel, or clean something.

5. Turn off the clocks that are built into Microwaves, VCR’s etc. Many Energy Star compliant appliances provide the ability to do this.

http://www.eere.energy.gov/con.....opic=11410

We did this a couple of seasons ago and have noticed that the house is cooler in Summer and warmer in Winter as a result.

When our internal temps are in the 80’s, and the outside temps are in the 70’s, it only needs to run about 10 or 15 minutes to match the temperatures. We usually only need to run it an hour or so before bed.

Be sure you open the windows on all levels to make sure you get nice air flow. Too little intake will wear down the motor. Also insure you have enough venting in your roof to remove the air your are pushing in to it.

Since this is mainly a big hole with a fan in it, make sure you seal it up properly in the fall to keep your heater from running constantly. We cut a few pieces of blueboard insulation to fit and stuffed them up in the hole.

Lastly, if you have south facing windows, close the blinds during the day in the summer to keep the heat out.

Great feedback

peeing in a jug, lo-flo shower and faucets, and jug in the toilet tank are great ways to save on water both hot and cold.

Great idea on the additional hot water tank to ‘acclimate’ the incoming water to house temp first before heating to 118 degrees.

Cooking on your gas grill year round is tasty, healthy and efficient, you get about 20+ hrs grilling time from one tank. 40-60 meals

Electric Blankets in conjuction with programmable thermostats work great. Just get your timing right and don’t overheat before you leave for work, usually an hour heat up before I rise is enough to get bathed and out the door comfortably.

peace all

This is not always cost effective. I work for a utilities and in the summer we average out the winter sewer bill so you don’t get charged sewer in the summer when you are watering your plants. Then there is the tap fee for them to come out and set a meter and with us it is 650 and then a meter fee. This is alot of money to save a couple of dollars a month. You might want to check with your utilities to see if they average winter for summer. It is not worth it where I live.

12b– Our incoming water must be near ground level as the water temperature is about 45 degrees during the winter. Where our water heater is, there is enough room for two. We purchased a new water heater leaving the old one in place but not connected to the gas. Water comes in first to the old heater and acclimated a little to room temperature before going into the new heater which takes quite a load off it.

12c– Installed self closures on closet and bathroom doors. Closets are typically located with at least one wall as an outside wall. Keeping the door closed allows the closet to act as an insulating barrier and eliminates a few square feet of area that has to be heated or cooled.

Very, VERY bad idea. Never use hot water to drink or cook with because it leaches contaminants from pipes and solder joints. Even if it is cold at first it still comes out of the hot water pipes. Doing this is an excellent way to give yourself lead poisoning if you live in an older house or apartment.

The problem you seem to have is with your pipes, not my advice. If you use or consume water through pipes you don’t trust because of fear of lead poisioning, maybe you should move.

Or perhaps see a therapist.

Very, VERY bad idea. Never use hot water to drink or cook with because it leaches contaminants from pipes and solder joints. Even if it is cold at first it still comes out of the hot water pipes. Doing this is an excellent way to give yourself lead poisoning if you live in an older house or apartment.

Programmable thermostat is a pretty cheap must-have in a house, and anyone can install them. Main thing to remember is wrap the wires around a pen so they don’t fall back in the wall.

Regarding the dual meter for water, that one will probably take a while to recover your costs. We received a letter from the water comission about installing a second meter and they said it would cost right around $400 to do so.

As for the individual who was talking about ethanol, it is slightly cheaper and uses local resources, but when you consider the lower gas mileage (since there is less energy in ethanol, about 30% more fuel is required) it ends up being a wash.

You can also adjust the interior components of your toilet tank to use less water or install a flapper that adjusts the amount of water used. If this sounds complicated spend about 15 minutes searching the web for toilet repair and you should be ready to go.

As for mold and mildew becoming a problem, you’d have to dry clothes nonstop everyday for this to be a problem in a dry, winter interior. It’s good to know, however, that people are careful of mold/mildew issues. It’s a serious threat to health and well-being.

Good feedback on your interesting website, nickel.

NEVER vent a GAS (propane, natural gas, etc.) dryer inside. For a gas dryer, the vent carries gas combustion exhaust along with moist air from the clothes. That could expose you to carbon monoxide.

Get an energy audit through your energy provider. Usually either the gas or electric company will offer this service. I paid $15 which could be applied to a future bill. Someone came out and inspected the house and offered advice on where my greatest energy leaks were. I had her order the list by return on the dollar. In addition we got 4 cf bulbs, a low-flow showerhead, 1 aerator for each faucet in the house, a blanket for the water heater, and insulation for the chimney. Very worthwhile!