Energy Tips 2-3
#2 Home Energy Saving tip
Find every incandescent bulb and replace it.
We know how it is — you’ve been buying LEDs to replace old bulbs as they burn out, which seems like the most frugal approach. But those old incandescents use up to 70% more energy and burn out 25 times quicker than LEDs. And they can lurk in odd places like inside your fridge or oven, or in your ceiling fixtures and outdoor lights. See how much energy you can save by replacing them.
3. TURN OFF THE EXTRA FREEZER, FRIDGE OR WINE COOLER.
This may seem like the worst of times to consolidate your food into a single refrigerator, but if your extra fridge or freezer is an older model that’s been retired to a garage or basement, it’s far less energy efficient than newer models. A ten-year old refrigerator could cost $53 annually, depending on the model, and a chest style freezer could cost $35 annually. Decide if that extra cooling is necessary. For the fridges that remain in operation, give them a spring cleaning by vacuuming the condenser coils, inspecting and cleaning the door gaskets for a proper seal, and checking that the temperature settings are correct (at or below 40 degrees for fridge and at 0 degrees for the freezer).
Wine chillers operate at higher temperatures so they use less energy than fridges. Having said that, a new Frigidaire wine cooler’s annual operating cost is $42.