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Heating
- Set back your thermostat at night or when you are away from home.
- Keep curtains open during the day to let the sun’s warmth in. Close at night.
- Use kitchen and bathroom fans sparingly. You can exhaust a houseful of heat in 2-3 hours using ventilation fans.
- Close the flue damper on your wood burning fireplace when it’s not in use.
- Remove window air conditioning units in winter to reduce drafts or cover all sides of the unit to minimize leakage.
Water Heating
- Take showers rather than baths - avoid long showers.
- Set back your water heater to 130 degrees to save energy, however never set below this temperature.
- Wash and rinse laundry in cold water.
- Wash only full loads of laundry and for smaller loads use appropriate water levels.
- Use your dishwasher's energy-saving wash and dry cycles.
- Don’t rinse your dishes before loading the dishwasher and wait for a full load.
- Turn off your electric water heater at the circuit breaker when away for more than 1 week.
Lighting
- Turn off lights in rooms not being used.
- Use task lighting - higher wattage for tasks such as reading and lower wattage for general lighting such as watching television.
- Use natural light whenever you can.
- Use lamp shades with white or light colored liners to reflect more light.
Appliances
Laundry
- Wash in cold water whenever possible.
- Load washers and dryers to capacity but don't over-load.
- Use water level controls to use less water for smaller loads.
- Follow detergent instructions. Using too much soap makes the washing machine work harder.
- Line dry laundry outside when possible.
- Clean the dryer's lint filter after each load.
- Use your automatic cycle and don’t over dry clothes.
Cooking
- When using the oven, cook as many dishes as possible at one time.
- Keep lids on your pots while cooking.
- Use the smallest pot or pan and burner needed for the job.
- Minimize the number of times you open the door while cooking and use a clock or timer.
- Preheat the oven only for items requiring precise starting temperatures.
- Turn off electric surface units and oven a short time before food is done allowing retained heat to complete cooking.
- Thaw frozen foods before cooking.
- Keep burner pans clean and shiny to reflect heat efficiently.
Refrigerators/Freezers
- Keep refrigerator and freezer full and minimize the number of times you open the door.
- If your refrigerator is equipped with an energy saver switch, use it whenever possible.
- Allow sufficient air space around food containers in the refrigerator for good air circulation and make sure the inside vents are not blocked.
- Make sure the door gasket seals well.
- Clean external coils behind and beneath the refrigerator regularly.
- Keep kick plates free of dust for proper circulation.
- Unplug refrigerators and freezers that are not in use.
- Don't allow frost to build up more than a quarter of an inch on manual defrost freezers.
Computers and other electrical items
- Computers, fax machines, TV's, VCR's, CD players, cable boxes, cassette decks consume energy because of their standby features. Consider unplugging them when you leave home or go on vacation.
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