EnergyMiser101

A Class on Home Energy Savings

     I'm not a huge fan of adult school, mostly because I'm usually too tired by 8:00 PM to tie my shoes, let alone learn something new. But, when I saw the title “Green Building” I couldn't resist and I'm glad I didn't. Although we're not planning to build anything right now, I picked up some great tips on how to make our 84-year-old house eco young.

     The woman teaching the course, Joan Cohen-Shaw, spent the past three years renovating her 65-year-old house, transforming it from a cute, grandmotherly cape cod into a slick looking, state-of-the-art green mansion. She talked so fast it was hard for me to write down everything she said. But here are a few highlights.

Watts Around the House

     We’ve been working hard to keep our electric bill under control by making sure we turn off the lights when we’re not in a room, or by shutting off the television and other appliances when they’re not needed. But have you ever wondered just what all those electrical gadgets are costing to operate?

     Our curiosity got so great that I gave my husband a handy little device that measures how much electricity an appliance uses and even computes the cost of use over a day, week, month or year. The one I bought is the Kill a Watt by P3 International Corporation.  It’s an oblong grey box that you plug into an electrical outlet. There’s another outlet on its face, and that’s where you plug in the appliance. A readout tells you the voltage, wattage and cost.

Why Did My Gasoline Get So Cheap?

      Hey! What's going on? Back in June, when gasoline prices were heading toward $4 a gallon, I posted a blog strongly suggesting that there was nothing on the horizon that would drive down the cost of the motor fuel.

     And now look what's happened. Gasoline is almost $2 less expensive, and every day the price at the pump seems to be a few cents cheaper than the day before.

     So what went wrong? Or, more appropriately for us motorists, what went right? In this case, bad news turned out to be good news.

Sometimes Mass Transit Takes a Back Seat

   

     I'm a big believer in mass transit, and I try to use it as often as possible. When my husband and I go into the city with our daughter, we take the local bus line from Montclair to the Port Authority terminal in Manhattan. It's relatively hassle free--except when you have to stand on the bus--and we feel like we're doing our bit for the environment. But, when you're traveling with a larger group, and you're thinking more about the green in your wallet than the green in your environment, driving is sometimes the most advantageous way to go.

     My recent trip into New York City with a friend shed some light on group commutes. Melissa and I, determined not to spend another long day in the house with our kids, (they had a couple of days off from school for a teachers' convention) decided to take her 14-year old son , his buddy, and our two eleven-year-old daughters to the Central Park Zoo. We figured Xavier and Evan would enjoy skateboarding through the park, taking in the city sites, while the girls laughed it up with the penguins and polar bears. But, our first challenge was getting there.

Geothermal Heat: Is It For You?

    BRRRRRR. Our outside thermometer fell to 42 degrees last night and for the first time this season our heat came on, bringing the indoor temperature to a brisk, but tolerable, 62 degrees. Last week, in preparation, I purchased a couple of down comforters—one for our eleven-year-old daughter and one for me and my husband. The total cost was $400, an expense I'm hoping to recoup by lowering our thermostat a couple of degrees this winter versus last winter.

                                   Bigger Investment

    But, while I was visiting the local down shop, our neighbors were making a much larger investment.  Hoping to reduce their reliance on fossil fuel and thus shrink their carbon footprint and their monthly bills, they had a geothermal heating system installed to the tune of $30,000! This may sound outrageous, but it's an investment that could pay off in the long run.