It's not energy that people want-it's the services that energy provides, such as the cooking of a delicious dinner and the heating of water for a shower. Through new technology, we can get the same services at a fraction of the energy cost.

For example, refrigerators made before 1978 averaged 1807 kilowatt-hours/year (kWh/year) As a result of federal regulations and industry innovations, this figure was down around 700 kWh/year by 1994. That means the cost of running a refrigerator was cut in half!

Use Energy Efficiently at Home

About one-third of all electricity produced at power plants in North America is used in the home. Families that reduce their energy use by avoiding waste and buying energy-efficient appliances save money and help preserve natural resources used to generate electricity.

Show your parents this list of ways to be energy efficient and save money on your energy bills every month. Maybe you can persuade them to pass the cost savings on to you!

Transportation: Use bicycles. Use buses, trains, and carpools. Combine errands to reduce trips.

Lighting and Heating/Air Conditioning:

• Install compact fluorescent light bulbs.
• Turn off lights when not in use.
• Have your furnace tuned up.
• Turn off heating or air conditioning at night if possible.

Appliances:

• Use clothesline when possible.
• Set refrigerator at optimum setting.
• Clean coils on refrigerator.

Water:

• Install a low-flow showerhead.
• Turn down the thermostat on your water heater.
• Put landscape sprinklers on a timer.

Efficient Energy Use at School

You don't have to be a super sleuth to figure out how to start saving energy costs for your school or school district. One of the best ways to save energy is by changing the lights. Just as there have been great advances in compact fluorescent lights, there have been great advances in fluorescent tube lighting. Click here for a project your class can do.

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