Here are a couple different styles of timer switches you can use. Both of them are an easy DIY project!

Leviton-Timer-Switch

This switch style, made my Leviton and available through Amazon is a digital timer that can automatically shut off the lights anywhere from 2 minutes to 15 minutes, depending on the button you push. This is a very cool option that would look sleek and attractive on a wall.

Here is another option that uses a manual timer knob.

If you are looking for even more automation, or if you have a room where you have a lot of in and out traffic, you could use a motion sensor. This style connects in between you standard bulb socket and your light-bulb.You can buy this one on Amazon as well.

• Recycle paper products – to find a recycling facility in your area check out Earth 911. Click here to customize a poster to inform employees about the recycling effort. 
• Return bottles and cans – use the money to throw a party quarterly.
• Use reusable cups instead of disposable ones, also use the same cup all day, just like being at home.
• Carpool or ride a bike if possible.
• Use a cooler, and reusable dishes for your lunch instead of plastic bags.
• If you go out to lunch, eat at the restaurant instead of getting it to go. Not only will you get a much needed break, but you will also be reducing the number of Styrofoam (expanded polystyrene) containers being thrown into the dumpster.  Only about 10% of expanded polystyrene is recycled, partially because of inconvenient recycling locations.
• Drink tap water instead of bottled – the oil used in the production, transportation and disposal of a bottle of water is, on average, equal to filling that bottle one-fourth of the way with oil, according to a report by the World Economic Forum.  Yuck!
• Unplug computers and other electronic devices to save on Vampire Power.

I’m sure there are a million other great ideas to conserve resources while at work.  What are some that you do?

Q: 25 years ago, people were driving El Caminos and had just started to think about recycling! What was it that inspired you to start a career in sustainability consulting?

Michael Laurie: Haha. Yes, I don’t think many people have been thinking about sustainability for more than 5 years. I was inspired when I read Walden and some of the environmental books that came out around the first Earth Day in 1970. I just knew that it was something I wanted to be involved in.

Q: What are you currently working on?

ML: I am currently carrying out commercial and industrial water audits in Bellingham, commercial irrigation audits around Puget Sound, and performing individual energy audits for home owners. I am also teaching in a program that trains people in sustainable building. Some of the topics include: rainwater collection system designs, and integrated water conservation systems. So, yes, I stay very busy!

Q: What do you think is the number one easiest water conservation measure people are overlooking?

ML: I think this depends on the home. However, leaks are probably the easiest to fix and yet the most overlooked problem. Look at your water meter, if it is spinning and all of your appliances are turned off, you probably have a leak. Outside, I think most people over-water their landscape.

Q: If you could get every household in America to implement one thing to save water or energy what would it be?  What do you think is deterring them from already doing it?

ML: Actually, can I break the rules here and offer two things? I think the first thing I would recommend is to replace your old toilet with a good quality high-efficiency toilet. I want to emphasize good quality. If you buy a high-efficiency toilet, but you have to flush it multiple times, it defeats the purpose. However, the new high quality low-flow toilets work very well.

My second suggestion is to seal up the air leakage in your home. The first important step is to find where the leaks are. You probably have to hire someone to perform a blower door test, which can be kind of expensive. However, the repair is very low in cost and easy to do. The cost of energy lost to air leaks can be tremendous, especially if you live in a particularly hot or cold climate.

I think in both of these cases, the initial cost is what is holding people up. I don’t think people look at energy or water conservation in a smart economic way. Often times, people expect a fast or relatively high payback or return on their investment. Why should you set an expectation that is so much higher than your other investments? For example, if you invested in the stock market and received a 15% return, you would probably be pretty happy. However, it is common for people to expect a much faster or greater return on the investments they make in conservation related technologies. Why not set your expectation to at least equal to your other investments. Further, why not even set it lower than that, like maybe 10%, due to all of the other benefits conservation brings to our environment.

Q: What do you see as the next big thing in water conservation for the home owner?

ML: I think the big next push will be a cumulative approach combining water and energy conservation. This connection has always existed, but we are just starting to realize its importance. If you put in an energy efficient washing machine, you can easily see how you save energy and water. However, this connection applies to all other water saving devices due to the energy required to purify, transport, and pump the water in your home! Depending on the efficiency of the energy used, saving water also probably means pulling carbon dioxide out of the air as well.

Earth Day

• -Visit an Earth Day event in your area to hear about water and energy conservation tips, and techniques.  To find an even in your area visit Earth Day Network to find a location near you.

-Bike to the local Home Depot to pick up a free EcoSmart compact fluorescent light bulb.  This deal begins April 19^th, and is limited to one free bulb per person, while supplies last.  Maybe you should bike fast just in case.

-Have a mini Earth Hour (event was originally held on March 28^th but don’t let that get you down) by turning off all of your lights and appliances.  That’s right folks no TV either!  Better yet, unplug everything to demonstrate how Vampire Power can be avoided.  This would be a fun opportunity to play a board game with your family in candlelight, or try out one of these cool Earth Day crafts for kids.

-Read this article written for kids about the importance of water in our every day life.  Then go for a walk, trash bags in hand to a local water way, spend an hour (or more) picking up litter.  Then properly dispose of the rubbish.

-Take a shower rather than a bath.  It uses less water, and therefore energy.  If you normally shower, take a shorter one.

Then celebrate that you all learned something together and had a great time while you did it!  Happy Earth Day!

Earth Day Everyday

Photo: morgantj

Photo: Mourner

However, the real star of this post is not CFLs, but LEDs or Light Emitting Diodes. The LED was first invented in Russia in the 1920s, and introduced in America as a practical electronic component in 1962. All early devices emitted low-intensity red light, but modern LEDs are available in a large variety of colors and light wavelengths. LEDs present many advantages over traditional light sources including lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, multiple and switchable colors, improved robustness, smaller size and faster switching. Previously, the production cost of LED was too high in order for it to be competitive against incandescent and CFLs. However, this is already starting to change as companies like Philips are using new technology to make cheaper and cheaper bulbs.

The new LED lights from Philips come in a variety of colors and are especially durable for outdoor use due to their waterproof, non-breakable bulb. Some of the products they offer can also change light level and color on-demand, to suit your mood or the time of day. LED lighting is definitely the future of energy-efficient home lighting!

New LED lights from Philips

For more information on the lighting options available from Philips, visit: philips.com
For a great overview on ‘Eco Home Lighting’, check out this post.

Does anyone know of a good source to buy LED lights online?

Let us start the conversation where most of us start and end our days, the bathroom.  We have broken down the bathroom into three main topic areas; Showers & Baths, Toilets & Faucets, and Lighting.  You may not be able to incorporate everything depending on budget, but some don’t cost a dime.  Here are some talking points for your next family meeting. 

Cost to check off your list:

$ = FREE

$$ = Less than $100

$$$ = More than $100

SHOWERS & BATHS

• Shorter Showers $ – Running hot water uses energy to get the water to you, to run the hot water heater, and to then treat the water after use.  Try to take shorter showers to reduce your water and energy usage. 
• Flow Restrictive Shower Heads $$ – They use substantially less water, and therefore energy.  They really have come a long way with the feel of these, plus they are easy enough to install on the weekend. 
• Shower Over Baths $ – Depending on the cubic space of your bathtub you will use more gallons to fill up the tub then you would to take a shower.  This is especially true if the shower is equipped with a flow restrictive shower head. 

TOILET & FAUCETS

• Turn Off Water While Brushing Your Teeth $ – This one should be pretty self explanatory.  When you don’t need water on, turn it off.  This is a task that does not require hot water so leave the warm water off, cold uses less energy.
• Look For Leaks $$ – Water loss from leaks add up over time.  Fix the seals as soon as possible.  There are many resources to fix the leak yourself if you are comfortable with DIY projects.  Take a look at Expert Village’s video, or the City of San Jose’s site  for a printable repair guide.  I did a little experiment with a measuring cup and a faucet with a steady drip.  In the 10 minutes of testing it leaked 1 cup.  That equates to 9 gallons a day of wasted water.  That is just one day!  I will be reusing the water from this experiment; it will not be wasted in vain.  
• More Efficient Bathroom Fixtures $$-$$$ – There are water saving bathroom faucets and toilets including dual flush , if that fixture just needs to be replaced.  

LIGHTING

• Turn Lights Off $ – Remember to switch off the lights when you leave the room.  Don’t forget the fan too.  If you have a window by the shower try to go lights out for a natural lighting experience, it doesn’t cost a thing.  Your family can’t remember to turn off the lights?  Then start a family change jar.  Every time you forget to turn out the lights you owe the family jar $0.25.  Believe me; you will all get the hang of it quickly.  If not, you will all have a nice family night out.
• Switch Out Lamps For CFLs $$ – It is time to jump on the band wagon with these, folks.  When incandescent lamps burn out give CFLs a try.  They pay for themselves quickly with lengthy lifespans and efficient energy usage.  They do contain small amounts of mercury and require special recycling.  Here is a great post from Lighter Footstep to see how to dispose of the retired CFLs properly.

If you have any ideas of your own we would be thrilled to see them!  Please join the discussion by dropping us a line, or leaving a comment below.

Utilizing a power strip or unplugging the culprit at the source of its evil is something quick, easy, and can save you a small bundle over the course of a year.  Just to make this perfectly clear how this could affect you where it counts, I will give you an example from my home.  Here are the figures for my television – basic, older 19″ screen television:

When our television is on it uses 70 watts, when it is off it uses 40.  Let’s say the television is on an average of 4 hours a day.  If we were to unplug the TV for the other 20 hours a day when not in use, we would save 292 kilowatt hours during the course of the year that adds up to about $35 if kilowatt hours are .12 in your part of the woods.  Not bad for just one appliance right?  Most homes have 2 or so televisions so that’s about $70 in savings a year.  That’s just the televisions; think about the DVD player, laptops, coffeemakers, phone chargers, which typically range from 3-7 watts depending on types and models.  They won’t rack up the bucks as quickly as the televisions but combined can add some more padding to that money clip of yours.

Here are a few mower energy zaps from your entertainment shrine to show you would you could pocket in a years time.  This is just an approximation and assumes the following off times.   For the Wii the power off time is 23 hours, the DVD off time is 23 hours, and the television off time is 20 yours.
Annual Savings
Imagine how it would be if the whole block participated in pulling the plug on these power suckers.  You could host a fabulous block party at the end of the year with all those savings!  Not to mention the impact on the environment.

We have yet to talk about the major energy sucker, the office.  Offices could be saving a substantial amount by powering down the computers, printers, etc at least enough for a nice company bbq.  I bet you will get some attention from the cute accountant after you bring this up at the staff meeting!

If it’s time to purchase appliances please check out Energy Star’s website to research what new products are out there to save money on utility bills and keep the blood sucking vampires at bay.  Muahhhhh…

Why does this save electricity?

Because when you turn them off there is no ‘Vampire Power’ (<a href=”http://conservationtutorials.org/?p=81″ target=”_self”>See previous post</a>)
Having all your devices connected to power strips makes it easy to switch them all off. It’s like unplugging all your stuff with one flick of a switch.

Offices could save a TON of money by switching off their power strips at night!