Saving Energy & Money at Home

by Michele Barlow

Question: What do these events have in common? Prohibition adopted by popular vote. Spanish influenza claims 780 Wyoming lives. Uranium discovered near Lusk. World War I ends. My house is built.

Answer: 1918.

An early resident of Michele Barlow's Laramie home, build in 1918 and renovated in 1998 to improve energy efficiency

Nearly five years ago, I grasped the American dream and purchased a 1918 two-bedroom stucco house next to Laramie's oldest city park. With an eagerness best described as wild obsession, I set about to renovate and modernize the home's interior, while preserving vintage detailing and improving energy performance.

Home-improvement practitioners are acutely aware that doing the right thing, with a medium-sized wad of cash, requires a lot of time, patience and elbow grease. In 1998, my then-boyfriend (now husband) and I removed the old single-paned windows and installed double-paned windows and screen/storm units. We shunned incandescent lighting in favor of compact fluorescent illumination. A local insulation company filled the external walls with shredded newspaper. And we bought an energy-efficient refrigerator and washing machine. (We don't own a clothes dryer because Wyoming's dry air and energetic winds are perfectly free!)

With these and other energy-efficiency improvements, our house outperformed 95% of other houses in 2001, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Home Energy Yardstick tool (www.epa.gov/hhiptool/index.html). Now, there's something to write home about!

Homegrown Money: Tips on Saving Money and Energy

I know what you're thinking: "Spare me the painful how-to lecture." OK, it's a deal. Simply check all that apply to your house or apartment:

Easy & Free:

Hot water heater thermostat is set at 120 ° F.

Freezer: frost-free and thermostat is set at 0 ° F.

Refrigerator: condenser coils are clean and thermostat is set between 37 ° and 40 ° F.

Room thermostats are set at 68 ° F (if I'm home) or 55 ° F (if I'm sleeping or away).

Curtains are closed during sunny summer days and after sunset in winter.

Vents and doors are closed in unused rooms.

TV, radio, computer and lights are off when not in use.

No leaky faucets or toilets.

Clothes and dish washers are fully loaded and laundry dries on clothesline.

Simple & Inexpensive

Low-flow showerheads ($7 - $23).

Water-saving aerator heads for kitchen and bathroom faucets ($3).

Programmable thermostat ($60).

Air leaks plugged in attic and basement; loose window panes puttied ($20).

R-7 or R-11 water heater blanket ($12).

Hot water pipes insulated (costs vary by length).

Compact fluorescent light bulbs ($13 - $19).

Rechargeable batteries (costs vary by type).

Shrink-film or low-emissivity film window kits ($4 - $30).

Although you may be tempted to just throw up your hands and turn up the air conditioner, challenge yourself to save energy this summer. The steps I've compiled above are eminently doable - and I didn't suggest that you move into a root cellar or sip warm tea at your weekend cookout. Each of us can easily cut our monthly energy bills and at the same time maintain a comfortable lifestyle, reduce pollution and extend our nation's energy supply.

Good News on Energy Efficiency

You may be surprised to learn that "national energy intensity" (energy use per unit of economic output [GDP]) in the United States fell 42 percent between 1973 and 2000. About three-quarters of this decline is attributable to real energy efficiency improvements and about one-quarter is due to structural changes and fuel switching.

Even though our country is much more energy-efficient today than it was 30 years ago, our biggest environmental problems are directly associated with energy production and use: global warming, urban smog, industrial sprawl, oil spills and acid rain, to mention a few.

Every time you buy a home appliance, tune up your heating system or replace a burned-out light bulb, you're making a decision that affects the environment. Together, we can make a big difference by taking energy use into account in our household purchasing and maintenance decisions.