Why should you be concerned about energy efficiency?
Energy efficiency means using less energy to accomplish the same task. By improving your energy efficiency, you reduce the size (and cost) of the renewable energy system needed to power your home. Improving your energy efficiency is the first and most important step toward adopting renewable energy. The more efficient use of energy throughout our country results in less money spent on energy by homeowners, schools, government agencies, businesses, and industries. The money that would have been spent on energy can instead be spent on consumer goods, education, services, and products. For more information, see the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy and the Alliance to Save Energy Web sites. An energy-efficient economy can grow without using more energy. In 1998, for instance, the U.S. gross domestic product increased 3.9%, while U.S. energy use decreased by 0.3%. Read about it:
What are the ways of energy saving through energy efficient lighting?
The energy-efficient lighting technology comprises compact and linear fluorescent lighting as well as LED lighting. Exponentially growing population and urbanization lead to the rise of commercial and residential buildings. Over the last 30 years, the demand for energy has risen significantly. In order to meet this increasing demand, governments across the world have started construction of new power plants. However, strong resistance from people staying near these plants have resulted in several legal actions and lawsuits that decelerated and, in some cases, stopped the construction of new power plants. Therefore, in order to extend the life of existing power plants and provisionally avoid the need to build new ones, governments have started promoting the use of energy-efficient products. The global energy-efficient lighting market is projected to expand at a CAGR of 3.5% during the forecast period and reach value of US$ 29,712.6 Mn by 2026.Download Brochure for More Information about Way of Energy-Efficient Lighting Technology : http://bit.ly/2CZu6hQPrices of energy-efficient light bulbs (such as CFLs and LEDs) were initially very high. Therefore, though being energy-efficient, these bulbs hardly replaced any incandescent lights. Currently, prices of LED bulbs have dropped considerably since its introduction and these bulbs have become affordable for the common man for use in lighting applications. Furthermore, since an LED light bulb can last from 20,000 to 50,000 hours i.e. 5–8 times longer than any other bulb, its cost of operation is lower than other bulb types. Also, an LED bulb is a filament-less bulb. It does not break like an incandescent bulb, which makes it more durable than others. Moreover, energy-efficient light bulbs offer significant electricity savings, as they utilize less energy and last longer. Thus, owing to their lower operating costs, these bulbs are increasingly being preferred in upcoming smart buildings and they are also replacing the existing traditional light bulbs in several other applications.
What are the best ways to save energy and reduce bills?
It depends on where you're starting from. The answer is different for an energy hog vs. a particularly efficient home.If you're using a lot relative to similar homes:Turn your thermostat off when you leave the house and dial it way down while sleeping. You won't notice the difference. The biggest improvements typically come from more efficient thermostat settings. Replace old light bulbs with CFLs. CFLs make a big difference when used throughout the house, though they may affect light quality.Lower the temperature of your water heater. The water should be hot but not scalding.If you're already doing these things above and are relatively efficient:Reduce vampire load by plugging a home theater into a power strip, then just turning the whole strip off when you are done watching TV.Use alternatives to heaters and A/C. Raise or lower shades to trap sunlight or block it. Reserve A/C use for the hottest days, otherwise use a fan.Get motivated and motivate others by challenging yourself and your friends to do even more. Social.opower.com was created for exactly this purpose.Either way, pay attention to your rate plan! Some utilities allow you to choose how you pay for energy (flat rate vs. time-of-use, etc.). Choose the one that best matches your usage patterns, or better yet, modify your usage to take advantage of differences in rates. If you wash your clothes during off-peak vs. peak hours, or pre-cool your home on "peak days", you may stand to save a lot. A great deal of this information, including how efficient/inefficient you are relative to similar homes, as well as simple scenario analysis tools are available on your utility's web site, if it is Opower-integrated.For more information, see: http://opower.com/what-is-opower...
What are the best new products in energy efficiency?
Energy is a fundamental requirement for economic and social development. Due to growing population and remarkable industrialization, energy demand is increasing rapidly. Traditional fossil fuel energy sources are declining meanwhile carbon emissions restrictions and environmental protection policies compelling countries to reduce their fossil combustions.Reduction in use of fossil and increasing demand simultaneously might lead towards an energy crisis. There are following approaches to avoid that,· Reduction in demand (Which is nearly impossible)· Increasing renewable energy sources· Increasing energy efficiencyLater two approaches are in trend and most of the countries all over the globe have started integrating Renewable Energy Sources (RES) into their main grid and incorporating practicing energy efficiency tactics at generation, transmission and consumption levels.Here if I only talk about consumption level energy efficiency, then we can practice following methods,· Use of smart meter· Find efficient ways to cool/heat the housesuch as use of thermostat etc.· Install solar heaters· Use light-emitting diodes (LED) and compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) for lighting up the buildings· Insulate house for better heating (cold places such as US and Canada practice this technique)· Use of energy efficient electronic appliances· Use smart cooking methods such as use of microwave oven instead of conventional ovens and use of pressure cookers. · Efficient use of washers and dryers can save lots of money on energy bills if used at the time of low energy demand period of day.
How to save our environment?
plant trees raise money and pick up litter