Kitchen appliances can account for up to 15% of your home energy usage and how you choose to cook will impact your energy bill. By following some energy savings tips, you can reduce your bills and here's how. There is more than one way to skin a cat: If you took an inventory of all the appliances you use to cook with the list might look something like this: oven, stovetop, slow cooker or crockpot, microwave and toaster oven. As you can already guess, each of these appliances uses a different amount of energy but what is not so obvious is how much energy each one uses. When you can choose between making a baked potato in the oven or in the microwave, which one uses less energy? How about cooking a soup or stew over the stovetop, or using the slowcooker? Meatloaf in the oven or toaster oven? Just like if you lived in a smaller house, it would take less time to cool the inside of the home with the same sized AC unit than if you lived in a larger house; it takes less energy to heat a smaller space than a larger one. So what would use less energy if you could put that meatloaf in a toaster oven compared to the conventional oven? How much less? You would be cutting your energy use by more than half! (and reducing the temperature in the kitchen as well). Of course, each appliance is “specialized” to cook certain foods but when you can choose, I encourage you to do so. Below is a table showing the energy costs of various cooking methods.  Other energy saving tips in the kitchen include: - When using the electric stovetops it is important to match the pan size to the element size, otherwise you will be wasting almost half the heat produced from the element. - The ideal pan also has a concave bottom to maximize the conduction in the pan. - A pressure cooker will also cook stovetop items faster and with less energy because the built-up pressure drops the boiling point of water thus cooking the food faster. - Cleaning your appliances increases their efficiency. - Avoid peeking into the oven while baking. - Double portions when using the oven to save energy on cooking. - Remove foil on the bottom of ovens to improve air circulation. For more ideas on how to save energy and money while you cook visit APS and SRP’s websites and videos.   Add Comment Comfort vs Payback, Your Choices 05/27/2010
Performing cost-effective green upgrades at home will always give the benefit of increased comfort. Unfortunately comfort and quick payback are not always a two-way street. Window replacements, garage insulation and increasing insulation levels above R-38 are all gray areas where the most cost effective solution may not align with lifestyle conditions. For example, replacing single pane windows in good condition is not cost-effective but the price paid for one south or west-facing window may well be worth the cost if it cools down a hot office or reduces traffic noise at night. So yes, in certain situations replacing the windows is worth the cost. Another popular green upgrade is insulation. It makes sense that adding more insulation will slow the transfer of heat into your home but unfortunately insulation is not a one-size-fits-all upgrade. If a home already has 6-inches of insulation the cost benefits of adding more diminish. Additional insulation will still save money on utility bills, but how much is the question. An ideal candidate would be a home as little or aging insulation where an upgrade would give the benefit of both increased comfort and energy savings. Often the more important issue is finding out how the insulation installed. A 5% defect in the installation will cut the R-value (its effectiveness) by 50%. Upgrades such as radiant barriers, solar attic fans and additional insulation should be considered based on the conditions of each home. These are decisions that should be discussed with an energy auditor and it is always best to get a couple of opinions before a large investment is made. Green Upgrades for the Frugal - Episode 1 03/13/2010
 Since my own energy audit last summer, I have been constantly looking for creative ways to go green the frugal way. For me it is not enough to simply accept what a specialty contractor tries to sell when I know I am not hearing the complete picture of what and why my utility bills are high. I like to dig around a bit, ask questions, get sources to discover the alternatives and trade offs of my investment. Is it tedious work? Yes, but it’s very satisfying for me to be able to pass this insider knowledge along to my clients. Today I’ll talk about an inexpensive way to buffer your attic insulation from the elements and help keep your home comfortable, cool and efficient. This method is a cost effective alternative if you are close to the point of diminishing returns for attic insulation, where it is not longer cost-effective to add additional insulation. Keep in mind that in the Phoenix area windows are our greatest source of heat gain (~50%), not from the ceiling (~6% and by the way the smallest source of heat gain in homes). A problem arises when you only need a small amount of insulation to reach your point of diminishing returns, say 2-inches or R-7 value, and insulation contractors charge by the square foot for 4-inch, 6-inch or 8-inches of additional insulation. Now it may be a smart idea to put that extra insulation in your attic if your comfort is more important than your ROI, but each case is different. The solution I’d like to share today is insulating with foam boards along the roof truss, or roof ceiling. Next time you visit any of your major home stores, take a walk down their lumber isle and look for large 4’x8’ sheets of foam board. I found foam boards ranging from $13 to $20 in R-values of R=5 to R=6.4. The idea is to use a utility knife and straight edge to cut the foam board to fit between your roof truss (either 16-inch or 24-inch oc). You will also need wire fabricators, or wire insulating holders which are simply small metal rods designed to hold the foam board in-between your roof studs via tension (no tools required). These boards run from $0.44 to $0.63/ ft2 but have several features that make them cost effective versus the $0.36/ ft2 cost of an insulation contractor or $0.80 – 1.00/ft2 for a radiant barrier. One is their ability to be added to your roof truss rather than the ceiling floor, which is a much more effective way to keep summer’s heat out of your home. The second feature is that these foam boards have a higher insulation value per inch than fiberglass batts or blown-in cellulose. The third reason is that the foam board comes with a reflective backing to act as a radiant barrier for additional heat protection without the extra costs of a reflective barrier. The last attractive feature of the foam board is for homes with cathedral ceiling and second floor hot rooms -- a DIY homeowner could target specific hot rooms by adding foam board to only certain areas of their roof for a small initial cost. For these reasons I would make the argument that foam board insulation is more cost effective and the in certain cases a recommended way to go green. Feel free to leave comments and questions and expect more from your energy audit! |
