Did You Know…
- North America is home to only 5% of the world's population, but is responsible for consuming one-third of all of the Earth's resources--75% of which ends up wasted.
- To minimize resource use, most packaging is much lighter today than even a 10 years ago. In 1970 a soft drink can weighed 57 grams. As apposed to now when the typical can now only weighs 35 grams
- Canadians use about 200 million aerosol cans per year. That's approximately seven per person.
- The average Canadian family throws out an estimated 1 tonne of packaging each year.
- Canadians take home more than 55 million plastic shopping bags each week.
(Global Action Plan for the Earth)
Be a conscious consumer…
- Buy only what you need.
- Buy reusable products rather than single-use.
- Buy durable, repairable products.
- Repair old items and use them again.
- Purchase products that can be recycled locally or that contain recycled materials.
- Purchase products in refillable of reusable containers.
- Choose products with the least amount of packaging.
- Buy fresh produce without packaging.
- Buy concentrates, larger-sized containers, or buy in bulk.
- Avoid individually wrapped or single-serving products.
- Bring your own shopping bag to the store.
To acquire more useful tips and learn more about water efficiency visit:
Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency merely means reducing the amount of energy that is used in a household. This simple goal is obtained by doing effortless tasks such as turning off the lights when leaving a room, or using motion sensors on outdoor lighting units as to reduce the amount of unnecessary lighting.
In Canada, the average household uses 141 gigajoules (GJ) of energy each year, in the form of electricity; natural gas, heating oil, propane, kerosene, and wood. Residential homes account for approximately 22% of Canada's energy use.
There are a wide range of methods of improving the energy efficiency of the average home. In fact, in many cases it is possible to reduce overall household energy use by greater than 50%. Reductions in home energy use have several benefits both to the homeowner and society as a whole. Decreased energy use results in lower monthly energy bills for the homeowner and a heather surrounding environment for the community. In many cases, the costs of financing energy efficiency improvements are far lower than the cost of purchasing electricity or fuels (see appendix for chart). Conscientious use of electricity and fuel consumption benefits the environment reducing greenhouse gases, inturn reducing global warming and acid rain.
Did You Know…
- Kilowatt-hour (kWh) is a unit of energy, equal to the energy required to light up ten 100-watt light bulbs for an hour. The lower the number on the EnerGuide label, the less energy the appliance consumes and the less it will cost to operate the appliance.
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Regulations of the Energy Efficiency Act, passed in 1992, specify minimum energy- efficiency standards for a number of energy-using equipment, including household appliances.
- Since 1972, the North American appliance manufacturing industry has significantly reduced the amount of energy consumed by its products:
- Refrigerators consume half the amount of energy than they consumed 25 years ago
- Dishwashers are 62% more energy efficient than they were 25 years ago
- Clothes washers are 56% more energy efficient than they were 25 years ago.
- A standard refrigerator accounts for 11% of a home's total energy requirements
- In one year, Canadian households use more than 22.5 billion kWh to run fridges and freezers alone. That's equivalent to leaving 22.5 million 100-watt light bulbs on all year long.
- Five minutes of pre-rinsing dishes under a faucet uses up to 25 gallons of water. A normal dishwashing cycle uses only 10.8 gallons.
- Some new high-end dishwashers now use infrared sensors to determine how dirty the dishes are and then automatically adjust the washing controls.
- The average family does about 392 loads of laundry per year, using about 18,000 gallons of water.
- Front-loading washers use about 40% less water and 50% less energy than standard top-loading model.
(More facts to be viewed at: Natural Resources Canada)
Tips for Conserving Energy
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Room Air Conditioners
Setting the thermostat of your room air conditioner at 25°C provides the most comfort for the least cost.
- A room air conditioner filter should be cleaned once a season. A dirty air filter reduces airflow and may even damage the unit.
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Barbecues
Gas barbecues save energy during hot weather, when indoor cooking can heat up your home and increase air conditioning needs.
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Showers
An energy-efficient showerhead or flow controller conserves energy without affecting water pressure.
- Dripping taps can waste 9000 litres of hot water each year. Replace leaky washers and save the hot water for when you really need it.
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Lighting
Compact fluorescent light bulbs are very efficient and effective way to light a room as they use less electricity and last up to 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs.
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Refrigerator
Organizing the food on your refrigerator shelves will allow for ample airflow and efficient operation.
- If you do not cool hot food before placing it in your refrigerator, you are letting valuable energy go to waste.
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Freezer
Place your freezer or refrigerator away from heated appliances like a radiators, heating vents, washers, dryers or furnaces, otherwise they work harder to keep their temperature
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Microwaves
You can save up to 50% of your cooking energy costs by using a microwave oven instead of a conventional oven.
To acquire more useful tips and learn more about energy efficiency visit:
The Kitchen
The kitchen is a gold mine for inefficiency in the areas of waste, water and energy as it is filled with appliances; ovens, fridges, stoves, sinks, etc. and is in constant use. The appliances are jus one aspect of the problem of inefficiency problem in the kitchen, the more important aspect, and much easier to correct, is the way in which these appliances are used. Below are a few helpful tips to give you an idea of how to make more efficient use of your kitchen appliances.
Tips:
• Every time you open the oven door the temperature can drop by as much as 24°C or 75°F. Bringing the oven back to its original temperature wastes a great deal of energy.
• Preheating the oven is unnecessary unless you’re baking.
• Check the seal on your oven door and make sure it’s tight. Even a small gap is enough to allow some heat to escape.
• When cooking small quantities, use your toaster oven, electric skillet, microwave oven and other small appliances instead of the stove.
• Turn off the oven a few minutes before food is ready and let its heat finish the job.
• Wash full dishwasher loads only. Rather than washing partial loads, use the rinse and hold cycle at the end of the day to prevent food from drying on.
• Check your water heater temperature. For energy efficiency, set it no higher than 50°C.
• Make sure that your refrigerator and freezer doors are sealed tightly. Try sliding a five-dollar bill through the closed door; if you can move the bill, the seal is likely not tight enough.
• Set the refrigerator at 3°C and the freezer at -18°C for optimum efficiency and food safety.
• Do not locate a fridge or freezer in an unheated area. Temperature fluctuations make the unit work harder to maintain the correct temperatures. This uses more electricity and reduces the life of the appliance.
• Defrosting your refrigerator regularly will help keep it to run efficiently and reduce costs.
Improvements:
To acquire more useful tips and learn more about efficiency in the kitchen visit:
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The Bathroom
The bathroom is a main source of concern in the household, relating to the efficient use of appliances such as; toilets, sinks, showerheads, etc., all revolving around water efficiency. The toilet is the leading water consumer in your home, it accounts for 29% of your total household water use. Along with showers and baths, the bathroom represents 63% of your home's total water use.
- If your toilet is more than 10 years old it is most likely very inefficient. Replacing it with a new efficient, low-flush toilet, which use between 50% and 80% less water per flush (depending on the model you buy).
- Replacing your old toilet with a new low-flush toilet will save you lots of money and at the same time it will provide a better grasp on the concept of water efficiency.
- The average family of four, flushes away 400 litres of water each day.
- The most efficient toilets use 6 litres per flush.
Average savings by installing an ultra low flush toilet *
This includes water, wastewater and surcharge fees ($2.00 per cubic meter). Presumes 5 flushes per person per day.
(www.epcor.ca)
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Should you wish to replace your toilet, the following consumer site may offer some additional help:
Things to Remember When in the Bathroom:
Your toilet is not a garbage can…
Avoid flushing garbage of any kind down the toilet. Every time you flush any form of trash down the toilet (other than T.P.), you waste more than 20 litres of water. Also, it is important to remember that trash may cause your toilet to block up. Flushing household chemicals such as; cleaners, paints, solvents, pesticides, etc., down the drain can be very damaging to the environment. Use proper containers to store chemical products and then dispose of them appropriately.
Don't run faucets unnecessarily…
When washing your face, brushing your teeth, or shaving, don't let the tap run. Instead, fill a glass with water for rinsing when brushing your teeth, rinse your razor and face by filling the sink with a small amount of warm water.
Control your water pressure…
Replacing your existing showerhead with a new low-flow model, and installing low-flow aerators on your faucets to reduce water flow will save you a great deal of money on your hydro bill, and reduce the inefficient use of waster.
Remember to be conscious of leaks…
A leaking toilet can waste more than 400 litres of water each day, you should check for leaks at least twice a year - an undetected leak can cost as much as $1,000 per month for a faulty toilet alone. The best way to check for leaks is to drop a few drops of food coloring into your toilet tank, and if after 15-20 minutes (without flushing), the color begins to become visible in the toilet bowl you have a leak. Most leaks do not entail professional help to repair; a simple trip to your local hardware store can assist you in fixing the problem on your own.
For more information on how to repair your own toilet see
TIPS:
- Install low-flow showerheads and flow reducer devices on taps.
- Add hot water to cold rather than cold to hot when you need warm water.
- Switch to an electric razor. Believe it or not, shaving with an electric razor uses less energy than it takes to heat the water for a traditional shave. At the very least, don’t let the hot water run; instead half-fill the basin.
To acquire more useful tips and learn more about efficiency in the bathroom visit:
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The Bedroom
Surprisingly enough the bedroom is a huge drain on efficiency. Windows can be one of the biggest problems in the bedroom, although windows provide views, natural lighting, ventilation, and solar heating in the winter. Unfortunately, they can also account for 10% to 25% of your heating bill. During the summer, sunny windows make your air conditioner work two to three times harder.
If your home has single-pane windows, consider replacing them. New double-pane windows with high-density glass are available on the market. In warmer climates, select windows with spectrally selective coatings to reduce heat gain. In colder climates, use windows that are gas filled with low-emissivity (low-e) coatings on the glass to reduce heat loss. If you are building a new home, you can make up for some of the cost of installing more efficient windows because doing so allows you to buy smaller, less expensive heating and cooling equipment.
To learn more about efficient windows see:
Lighting
Increasing your lighting efficiency is one of the fastest ways to decrease your energy bills. If you replace 25% of your lights in high-use areas with fluorescents, you can save around 50% of your lighting energy bill.
Fluorescent bulbs are much more efficient than incandescent ones and last 6 to 10 times longer. Although fluorescent and compact fluorescent lights are more expensive than incandescent’s, they pay for themselves by saving energy over their lifetime.
- Look for the ENERGY STAR label when purchasing these products.
Heating and Cooling
Heating and cooling your home uses more energy and drains more energy dollars than any other system in your home. On average, 44% of your utility bill goes towards the use of these systems.
No matter what kind of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system you have in your house, you can save money and increase comfort by properly maintaining and upgrading your equipment.
Thermostats
You can save as much as 10% a year on your heating and cooling bills by simply turning your thermostat back 10% to 15% for 8 hours. You can do this automatically without sacrificing comfort by installing a programmable thermostat.
By using a programmable thermostat, you can adjust the times you turn on the heating or air-conditioning according to a pre-set schedule. As a result, you don't have to manually operate the equipment as much when you are asleep or when the house or part of the house is not occupied. Programmable thermostats can store and repeat multiple daily settings (six or more temperature settings a day) that you can manually change without affecting the rest of the daily or weekly program. When shopping for a programmable thermostat, be sure to look for the ENERGY STAR label.
Tips:
- Clean humidifiers and air conditioners regularly and properly (at least once a week) with a damp cloth to avoid putting dust back into the air.
- If you have allergies or asthma or are sensitive to dust mites you may want to:
- Remove dust collectors such as carpet and stuffed animals from your bedroom.
- Cover your mattress with a dust-proof mattress case.
- Limit indoor humidity in the winter to 30% - 50%
- If you must use a humidifier, clean it regularly with a strong solution of vinegar and hot water.
- If you have a window air conditioner, keep it very clean. Clean the coils and check them for visible signs of mold growth.
To learn more visit:
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The Laundry Room
The laundry room is a very bipolar room with regards to efficiency. It is either one of the most efficient rooms in the house or it could be one of the most inefficient. It really comes down to the appliances in which you own, and weather they are certified by ENERGY STAR or not.
TIPS:
- Locate your washing machine close to your hot water tank to reduce heat loss in the pipes.
- Choose a wash time based on the size of the load and the dirtiness of the clothes – 8 to 10 minutes is usually enough for most laundry.
- Always use a cold-water rinse. This not only saves energy, but clothes will rinse cleaner and wrinkle less.
- Clean the lint filter after every dryer load and clean the exhaust duct every year to increase efficiency and reduce energy consumption.
- Avoid over-drying clothes. This uses extra electricity and sets in wrinkles. A shorter drying time reduces harm to clothing and maintains colour.
- Run consecutive loads to take advantage of the preheated dryer.
- Use a clothesline indoors or outdoors to dry clothes most efficiently.
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The Living room
The living room in your household encompasses all the components of this audit into one room. Take a look at the above issues for each room and apply the relevant ones to the issues that exist in you living room. Other rooms can be generalized but the problem with the living room is that everyone has a different sense of this room, this is the “independent” room, one without restrictions, people can put anything from a hot tub to an arcade in the living room.
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Social Component/Overview
Now that you have a better understanding of the word efficiency and how it relates to your home with regards to water, waste, and energy, you can pass this information on to the other people in your home. Although one person can make a difference, and a great one at that, a group effort can make all the difference. If you yourself change your mind set, apply the tips, and fulfill the goals in the above sections, than you are doing great, but to go above and beyond what you can do, you can help the other people in your home acquire this knowledge and understanding of this extremely pertinent issue, changing the way your whole household works. Pass on the good word and you will be apart of saving our beautiful planet on from the dangers of inefficiency.
Work Cited
U.S Department of Energy. Online. Internet. 15 December. 2003
Efficient Windows. Online. Internet. 13 December. 2003
Toronto. Online. Internet. 15 December. 2003
Toiletology 101. Online. Internet. 15 December. 2003
Terry Love Plumbing. Online. Internet. 16 December. 2003
Natural Resources Canada. Online. Internet. 15 December. 2003
Toronto. Online. Internet. 15 December. 2003
Environment Canada. Online. Internet. 14 December. 2003
