Green Energy Best Practices
There are many things you can do at home or work for free that will not only reduce your energy bill, but also make a big impact on the environment. We've compiled a list of the best things you can do at school, at work, at home, and on your commute.
Green Energy Best Practices
There are many things you can do at home or work for free that will not only reduce your energy bill, but also make a big impact on the environment. We've compiled a list of the best things you can do at school, at work, at home, and on your commute.
What can you do at home?
Installing solar panels, implementing solar water heating, and utilizing geothermal heat pumps are all ways that you can incorporate green energy practices into your home. Government incentives such as tax rebates for solar photovoltaic systems vary by state, but they are common across the country. In addition, electricity providers often allow homeowners to connect their home renewable energy systems to the power grid and sell excess energy to their provider.
When planning for a home renewable energy system, you may encounter state and community regulations, electrical inspections, and specific building codes. It’s best to check with your homeowners association or local government for system requirements and read up on your area’s green energy incentives. While this may take some time, tax rebates are often generous and connecting your home’s system to the electrical grid almost always leads to a positive return on investment. However, these ventures can still be quite expensive and time-consuming to install, not to mention inaccessible in areas without solar installation companies. If these green energy practices are unrealistic for your home, you can still help save the planet by conserving energy and water whenever possible.
What can you do at school?
Switching to LED lighting can go a long way towards saving energy at school. High quality LED lights consume up to 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs, and can last up to 25 times longer. Moreover, only about 5% of energy from LED lights is lost to heat, while alternative lighting sources like incandescent bulbs and compact fluorescent lights can waste up to 90% of the energy they consume.
On that note, schools can also switch to motion-sensitive lights, which would mitigate the amount of energy lost to carelessness or forgetfulness. Even if it’s too expensive to switch all lights to motion-sensitive ones, schools can still add them in high-traffic areas to maximize their impact. This investment will help save not only the planet, but money spent on energy bills as well.
Everyone can help save energy at school; it doesn’t have to be in the form of monetary investments. From turning off lights and devices when leaving a room to closing doors so that less heat escapes, there are myriad chances to lessen your school’s environmental footprint.
What can you do at work?
Energy bills of the average small/medium enterprise (SME) could be lowered by up to 25% if certain behavior changes were implemented and energy efficiency measures were employed.
Heating is typically the source of the highest energy cost at a day-to-day job. Preventing heat loss can go a long way to reducing costs. Two ideal methods are to improve insulation and block draughts. Novel, high-tech thermostats can also set cycle controls for the heating and cooling, ensuring that these are turned off when the office is empty.
Light usage can also impact energy bills. As a business, the best way to lower the costs of lights is to check if all lights are LED and motion-sensor activated. LED lights are the most energy-efficient, while motion sensor lights will cost less when nobody is present in the room. Furthermore, ensure that natural lighting is also used to its full potential, by moving work locations to areas that have natural lighting.
With all of this in mind, it is still essential to promote energy efficiency practices with coworkers in the workplace. Little things, like turning off the heating after leaving the workplace and turning off the lights after leaving the room, can add up (or lower your energy bill).
What can you do in transit?
A better alternative for using your car everyday to work, school, or to run errands is to use public transportation. Buses and trains can reduce the amount of car emissions and traffic on roads. Plus, electric buses are more energy efficient, using less energy compared to diesel buses. The same goes for trams and light rail for a longer commute, but these modes of transportation can run on renewable energy. And walking and cycling for shorter distances have complete energy savings where they do not use fuel. Walking and cycling also promotes exercise and better health.
If none of these more energy efficient options are available, the choice of private transportation can also reduce emissions and be more energy efficient. Like the electric vehicle (EV), and its market is currently growing. In the coming years buying EVs will be more affordable and have better battery technology. There are also many available tax incentives for buying an EV to lower the cost. The average cost to “fuel” an EV is about 632 dollars less than a gas powered car. Though it does depend on your electricity bill and gas prices in your area