Keep Cool This Summer
Without Breaking a Sweat or Your Bank!
Summer is here and temperatures are rising.
How do you stay cool at home and the office without being
an energy hog?
Buy ENERGY STAR? qualified products and use them wisely. An
ENERGY STAR label means that these products – like refrigerators,
air conditioners, fans, and computers – use less energy
and can save you as much as 30% on your energy bill. Besides
putting money back into your wallet, using less energy helps
keep our air, land and water clean.
Start cutting your energy bills with the following energy-smart
tips:
Keep the sun out. Close curtains, blinds and shades during
the sunniest time of the day to help keep your home and office
from heating up.
Tighten up your home. Stop air leaks around doors and windows
that let cool air escape. Apply weather stripping and fill
in any gaps to lower heating and cooling costs.
Install energy-efficient ceiling fans. ENERGY STAR qualified
ceiling fans cost only pennies a day and use the same energy
as a 100-watt light bulb. Ceiling fans can replace air conditioning
on warm days. When it gets really hot, use both the ceiling
fan and the air conditioner to spread cool air evenly throughout
your home – this also works for winter heating. And
remember to turn off the fan when nobody is in the room!
Use a programmable thermostat. ENERGY STAR thermostats adjust
temperatures when you are at home or away. This saves up to
$115 each year in energy costs, if used correctly. During
the summer, set your room temperature to 78 degrees when you
are at home and 85 degrees or off when you are away. This
is especially important when you hear a Flex Your Power NOW!
Alert that tells you when your area is using too much energy.
Upgrade your central or room air conditioner. An ENERGY STAR
air conditioner in your home or business saves electricity
and reduces smog. A new energy-efficient model saves money,
too -- $20 to $65 each year. Ask your utility company for
rebates to help cut the cost of replacing your old air conditioner.
And don’t forget to clean filters monthly to improve
your air conditioner’s efficiency.
Taking action at home and at work not only help you save energy
and money, but add to a healthy California. To learn more
about how you can save energy and money at home and work,
visit the Flex Your Power website at www.FYPower.org. With
more than 1,000 incentive and technical assistance programs,
all Californians can find all kinds of opportunities to save
energy and money.
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