Clean North

Top Ten Energy Saving Tips for Renters

Posted by: Kathie Brosemer (kathie) on January 16, 2002 at 22:13:08
from the Apartment-Dwellers-Against-Climate-Change dept.

EnerACT is in the process of developing a comprehensive campaign to spread the word about energy conservation, efficiency and renewable energy. We need your help to make this campaign as relevant as possible. We've created a very brief online survey the objective of which is to deduce what you want to know about these issues. Please take the time to do the survey, at this link. And see the top ten, below.

EnerACT presents: the Top Ten Energy Saving Tips for Renters

1. Turn off lights when not in use. Also, be sure to turn off TVs and other "power-suckers" when not in use.
2. If you have control over your heat, you'll save by manually setting the temperature to these recommended thermostat settings:
   
   Sitting, reading, watching TV: 21ºC / 70ºF
   Working around the house: 20ºC / 68ºF
   Sleeping: 18ºC / 64ºF
   Away from home: 16ºC / 61ºF
   
   Higher densities mean that apartments are more sheltered. If there are no water pipes in exterior walls that could freeze set the temperature as low as 10ºC / 50ºF when you're away.
3. Wash laundry with cold water. This does just as good a job, keeps your colours bright and saves a considerable amount of energy.
4. Take short showers instead of baths. A five-minute shower uses about half as much water as a bath.
5. Replace incandescent bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescents, which are four times more efficient than incandescents and last about eight times as long.
6. If you can't find compact fluorescents, control the intensity of your incandescents with dimmer switches. A bulb dimmed by 25% uses 10% less energy.
7. Use curtains or blinds to control the heat. On south-facing windows, open your curtains or blinds to let the sun warm the room. Close them at night to reduce heat loss through windows.
8. Using a low-flow showerhead can save up to 15% of your home's hot water use. You should also install aerators on your sink faucets: These can reduce the water used for hand washing by about 40%. You can get inexpensive aerators and showerheads from Naturally Green, at 945-1573.
9. Use small appliances such as a microwave, slow cooker, electric kettle or toaster oven instead of the range when possible.
10. Take clothes out of the dryer promptly and fold or hang them to prevent wrinkling. Your iron uses a lot of energy. Better still, hang clothes on a portable dowel clothes dryer. It will help humidify your dry winter apartment air.

That's it! For a very comprehensive list of energy savers for tenants, visit our website and follow the link from the home page. Also, visit our website to take a look at our 2001-2002 Business Directory of environmental services in Toronto, our newsletters and other great resources!
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The Energy Action Council of Toronto (EnerACT) is a community-based non-profit group that aims to act as a catalyst in the move towards more sustainable energy choices. This email is part of an infrequent service provided by EnerACT. To subscribe to this list, send an email to info@EnerACT.org with "subscribe" in the subject line.