Lose Your Excuse – Energy-Saving Tips!

The U.S. Department of Energy's Lose Your Excuse program was started to educate kids on how to use energy wisely. Well, it’s not just for kids! We've listed a number of their savvy energy-saving tips below that take a little effort but will result in a lot of savings!

Turn off lights

Why should you turn off lights when you leave a room? Flipping a switch is probably the easiest way to start saving energy.

Did you know?
• Artificial lighting is responsible for about 15% of a home's electricity use. That means turning off the lights can definitely reduce your home's energy use--and your family's energy bill!
• Some types of bulbs are more efficient than others, but the most-energy efficient bulb of all is one that's turned off when not in use.

Shut off computers

Leaving your computer on 24/7 is a big energy suck. To save energy, turn off your monitor if you aren't coming back for 20 minutes—and shut down the main computer if you are going to be away for more than 2 hours.

Did you know?
• You can set your computer and monitor to shut off automatically through your operating system. There's usually a "stand-by" mode, which uses 70% less power than normal, and a "shut down" option that turns the computer fully off.
• To save energy, you should set all computers in your home to shut down after a period of inactivity!
• A screensaver that shows any image on the screen doesn't save any energy at all, and may actually use MORE energy. You save energy only if the monitor goes dark by going to sleep.
• The type of computer your family has can affect your energy use each month. Laptops use much less energy than desktop computers do.

Use natural lighting, heating, and cooling

On average, heating and cooling a home accounts for almost half of its energy usage. That's why it makes sense to work with the power of the sun to help out your home's lighting, heating, and cooling systems!

Did you know?
• As any cat knows, sunlight warms up a room a lot! So, the key is to let the sunlight in when you want the warmth (like during the winter), and close blinds and drapes when you don't (like during hot summer months).

Adapted from http://lights4learning.org/index.php?page=tips

Floodlights 101: Protect Your Property with Proper Lighting

Research has shown that crimes occur mostly at night. Most criminals prefer to strike under the cover of darkness, when they are less likely to be seen. Property owners should consider this fact and keep their properties well lit as a preventative measure. While in some cases regular street lighting may be enough for your particular property, some streetlights do not provide enough lighting. This is because many times a property can be set further back on the lot, or ambient lighting may be dim. In this case, consider investing in floodlights to compensate for these problems.

There are many types of floodlights available on the market; however, the outdoor flood lights that are more commonly utilized are 250-500 watt tungsten bulbs. Many of them come with a built-in motion detector, which turns them on automatically. These halogen floodlights should be installed in such a way as to light up any blind spots around your property where a burglar may be able to hide. Always make sure that your lights do not shine into the windows of others’ properties around you. Also make sure that the flood cones are pointed down, because this will maximize the radius of the lighting. The best angle to hang a floodlight is at 22 degrees, because it will keep everything lit in the area, and at the same time, it will not blind someone approaching.

When using outdoor floodlights, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. If you do not use your lights properly, they may become more of a hindrance than a security enhancement. Keep the following considerations in mind:

1. Do not allow your lighting to be at an angle where it may obstruct a driver’s view. Many accidents have been caused by poorly installed flood lighting.

2. If you do not install your floodlight properly, you may actually help the potential burglar. For example, the light could blind any potential witnesses because the lighting on your home was aimed improperly or because it wasn’t set correctly with a timer or motion-sensing device. Also if you set up your lighting and the radius of light doesn’t overlap, it can provide shadows for the burglar to seek cover.

3. Motion sensors that are built-in to your floodlights can be set off by wild animals, pets, and wind. This will cause false alarms, and the neighbors may become accustomed to your house being illuminated for no reason. Make sure to set your sensors at night and to test them thoroughly. It doesn’t make sense to set them during the day and then they end up not working at night.

4. 500 watt tungsten bulbs are expensive and inefficient to run. You may not need anything that strong to provide the illumination you may need. Some people are happy with only 60 watts of light. Another option is to consider solar floodlights. These run based on the sun’s power, which is more energy efficient. The down side is that the brightness of the bulb is definitely not as powerful in most models as that of a wired light.

Simply keep these points in mind when considering the purchase of flood lights – the only thing worse than being a victim of a crime is being lulled into a false sense of security in and around your property. Criminals don’t like to be seen so make sure to help keep them away with your security floodlights setup.

Adapted from http://www.home-master.net/flood-lights-provide-great-security-for-your-property