energy audit

Yay my electric bill went down $10 in the last month. And I don't think I even started unplugging everything an entire month ago. When I was in community college a long time ago I had a roomate who suffered from OCD. She could not have anything but the fridge plugged in over night. She even bought me a battery powered alarm clock. She was not doing it to save energy but because she had serious fears, but none the less, it was a good habit, that I had been slacking on, until we met for our last class. I do have everything plugged into power cords but now I unplug them when I'm not using it. Sure it takes a minute for the tv listings to come back up when I plug the cable box back in but it's not gonna kill me. I could probably just look online. To think that I could save at least 10$ a month, over 100 a year, by unplugging stuff...Well seeing I don't have a job right now I have made it my job to unplug stuff. Now it drives my boyfriend crazy. Just this morning he was complaining that his electric toothbrush needed a charge, but he will get over it.

On a second note a friend of mine is taking an environmental management class at Harvard Ex. School. and they did an energy audit for their class and this is what they had to do, I thought I'd share it with everyone.

Why conduct a Home Energy Audit?

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Assess energy usage

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Identify sources of inefficiency

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Identify opportunities for conservation, both economic and

environmental

STUDENTS SHOULD BE ABLE TO:

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Identify factors that contribute to their energy load

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Analyze their annual utility usage

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Make recommendations for energy conservation • Connect home activities with energy consumption

HOME ENERGY AUDIT TOOLS AND INFORMATION

The following links should be of great help trying to evaluate your residence for your Home Energy Audit

assignment. Most of them require you to answer basic questions regarding your home – construction, style,

age, etc. and to enter accurate utility information. The last 3 pages include vocabulary terms that are typically

associated with conducting an energy audit.

TIP: If you live in an apartment, enter the information into the audit programs as a one story home with the

appropriate square footage. Depending on the floor of your apartment, enter the appropriate insulation

information for the “basement” and “roof”. For example, if you live on the second floor of a three-family home

– enter into the audit programs that you have a fully insulated basement and roof.

NStar Home Analyzer

http://www.energyguide.com/ha/Welcome.aspx?referrerid=65&sid=461

Compares your home's energy use to other similar homes and provides tips on ways to make your home more

energy efficient.

Home Energy Saver

http://hes.lbl.gov/

The Home Energy Saver was the first Internet-based tool for calculating energy use in residential buildings. The

project is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), as part of the national ENERGY STAR Program

for improving energy efficiency in homes, with previous support from the U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA), the US Department of Housing and Urban Development's PATH projgram, and the California

Energy Commission's Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) program.

Department of Energy:

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Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy – Do It Yourself Audit

http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/energy_audits/index.cfm/mytopic=11160

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Information for Apartments

http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/apartments/index.cfm/mytopic=10010

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Energy Savers: Tips for saving energy at home

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/consumer/tips/home_energy.html

Energy Star: Home Energy Yardstick

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=home_energy_yardstick.showStep2

The ENERGY STAR Home Energy Yardstick can be used to compare your home's energy efficiency to similar

homes across the country and get recommendations for energy-saving home improvements from ENERGY

STAR. You will also need to enter some basic information about your home (such as zip code, age, square

footage, and number of occupants). If you don't have your bills, contact your utility for a 12-month summary.

Energy Guide: Smart Energy Choices

http://www.energyguide.com/

A tool to help analyze your energy consumption.

Energy Information Administration

http://www.eia.doe.gov/

EIA is the Nation’s premier source of unbiased energy data, analysis and forecasting. EIA provides this

information to promote sound policy making, efficient energy markets, and public understanding about energy

and its interaction with the economy and the environment. By law, EIA’s products are prepared independently

of Administration policy considerations. EIA neither formulates nor advocates any policy conclusions. This is

an excellent resource to look at national energy data and economic or event-driven issues that may impact the

energy market.