I recently had an energy audit done, by KIUC, on my personal residence. “Clarino” was our very friendly and knowledgeable expert who paid a personal visit to my home. The meeting took about an hour and we got to see our average usage in comparison to others around the island, narrow in on our highest energy consuming products, and get advice on how to minimize our electric cost.
It should be noted that over the past 5 years or so I’ve put in a new energy star washer, a gas dryer, an on-demand gas water heater, a brand new energy star refrigerator, and fluorescent lighting where possible.
I take pride in trying to conserve energy/water/time/space/money. Not only because I like the challenge, but it saves money in this down economy and since I’m a Certified Green Professional it’s a bit expected that I should adhere to these values.
On a slightly personal note…I have this ongoing “argument” in my household with my housemates (daughter and boyfriend) that “THEY consume too much energy, and THEY should be more like me 🙂 ” Of course that never goes over well. So, I selfishly decided to call Clarino and get a third party opinion, knowing that if he said it, they’d listen.
Everyone in my household has their own “weaknesses”. My daughter like to run her laptop computer (plugged in) 24/7. My boyfriend LOVES his 50″ plasma TV and I appreciate good lighting in the evening. My entire argument was centered around changing THEIR consumption as I felt like my contribution was small because I only need 2 or 3 hours of lighting in the evening and I’m willing to pay for the luxury of incandescent, dimmable lights. I plan on converting to LED lights in the near future. So, I’M NOT the problem. Right?
Well, overall, I was very pleased with our meeting and found it very useful. I found out that on average, for Kauai, residential homes consume 492 KWH per month. My house is at 324 KWH per month. That made me happy. I’d already done most of the hard work converting to gas, and buying a new refrigerator, washing full loads of laundry, not running the AC, etc.
But wouldn’t you know it?? The largest consumption of energy in my household that can and should be changed to even further drop my consumption (and subsequently my electric bill): the Plasma TV, the computer being plugged in and the incandescent lighting. In that order. I win! sort of…guess I’ll be buying those LED’s sooner rather than later.
In closing, we’re all responsible for our energy consumption, and conservation. I suggest everyone call Clarino at KIUC 808-246-8280 and get the FREE Energy Audit. It was worth it!
Other useful tips:
Dim your incandescent dimmable lights
Unplug laptop computers at the wall, not the computer. Or turn off power strip where a laptop is plugged into.
Turn off fans halfway through the night
Turn refrigerator temp up to 38-40, Freezer to 0
turn off subwoofer for home stereo system when not in use (estimated savings $15/mo.)
