(Un)common Sense: Power
What do you do every day that costs both you—and our planet?
These uncommon sense tips, while seemingly small, are great ways to save while also training your mind to think green—all the time.
1. Turn off lights when not in a room—then walk around the whole house and turn stuff off.
Cornell University did an on-campus study and found that simply turning off the lights which were not in use would save them around $60,000 per year.
Of course, savings in your home won’t be this drastic. But the rule applies: When you leave a room, turn off lights. With CFL bulbs (the twisty compact fluorescent kind), only turn them on if you plan to be in a room for over 15 minutes. Even though your savings may not be high, if we all pitch in we can all help prevent light pollution, wasted electricity, and damage to our planet.
Better yet, make a habit of doing an energy walkthrough every time you leave home. Simply walk through all the rooms of your house and ensure everything is unplugged and off before leaving.
2. Clean your appliance filters regularly—your dryer vents, and furnace, too.
Filters are there to ensure the proper function of all our appliances. Regularly cleaning appliance filters not only lengthens their lives, it also decreases their costs and breakdowns, reduces air pollution, and can actually help prevent fires.
3. Turn off the water heater if you are going to be out of your house for a couple of days.
Going on a vacation? Why leave your hot water heater on? For the cat? News flash—cats hate showers. While it may seem tiny, turning the water heater off does save a good amount of energy. Just like turning off lights, while it may not seem important, as a society it really does add up.
4. Don’t let your car idle, turn it off.
Simply put, if you’re driving and plan to stop a while, unless at a light, turn off your engine. Argonne National Laboratory found that turning off your engine for just 10 seconds and then turning it back on again is more efficient than letting your motor idle. Also, remember that idling won’t make your car warm up any faster than driving. So get in, fasten your seatbelt, and save energy.
5. Use an induction stove top.
An induction stove top works by creating an electromagnetic connection between your pan and the stove. A normal stove top uses energy to heat the stove which in turn transfers the heat to your pan. An induction stove top heats the pan directly.
Induction cooking is faster (it can boil 6 quarts of water up to four minutes faster than regular stove tops), does not release indoor pollutants like gas, is safer (the stove top always remains cool even when your pan is hot) and uses a lot less energy.
Learn more ways to save on power with LADWP.
Learn more about the assumptions behind Magenta House water and power savings calculations.
