IDT Energy Savings

Knowing where all the hot water you use goes is a great first step in starting a savings plan help to get your energy bill under control. IDT Energy suggests that you examine a few of your
simple every day activities which may be using a lot more water than you realize.

Here is a sample of the typical quantities of water used in daily routine activities:

•    Laundry-                       32 Gallons per load of laundry

•    Shower-                          20 Gallons per shower

•    Bath-                                20 Gallons per bath

•    Dishes-                            12 Gallons or water are used per load in an automatic dishwasher

•    Food preparation-     This can typically use about 5 gallons of water

•    Dishes by Hand-          4 Gallons of water are used to wash a sink full of dishes.

Considering that about 12% of household energy expenditure goes toward heating water, it is a great idea to find ways to save on the use of that precious hot water. Here are some simple yet powerful ideas.

•    Low-flow, aerating faucets and shower heads can save lots of water and the energy it takes to heat that water.

•    You can waste a surprisingly large amount of water in a short time if you don’t fix leaky faucets right away.

•    Check the thermostat on your hot water heater. Newly installed heaters have factory settings that are probably way too hot. A moderate setting of 120? Fahrenheit is hot enough for the majority of household needs.

•    In addition to insulating your electric hot-water storage tank and/or natural gas and/or oil hot water storage tank, be sure to insulate the first 6 feet of the water pipes which are connected to the hot water heater, both hot and cold.

•    Be sure install heat traps on the water pipes at the water heater, both hot and cold, so that heat loss is reduced to a minimum. If you are purchasing a new water heater, be sure it has built-in heat traps.

It takes a lot of energy to get the hot water you need for all your household needs, probably more than you think. For most people about 12% of the money they spend on powering their home is used to heat water, which is typically the third largest household energy expense. It therefore is a smart place to start when looking for places to make cuts in their budget for utilities.

There are basically four strategies to consider when planning to reduce your water heating bills. Those strategies are:

1.    Reduce the amount of hot water you use.
2.    Lower the temperature on the thermostat of your hot water heater.
3.    Efficiently heat and retain the heat by properly insulating your water heater.
4.    Purchase a new water heater which heats more efficiently.

It is one of the goals at IDT Energy to help consumers in New York and elsewhere save money on their energy bill. We have been providing ideas and tips for saving money, but another approach is to think more globally about saving energy at home.

It is time to begin thinking about your home as unified system with many parts that all fit together and affect each other. For instance, you may decide to install Energy Star rated windows and improved insulation; you will probably be able to replace your heating and/or cooling system with a smaller unit when the time comes for replacement.

Not only have you saved money because you are retaining the heat/cold air inside where you want it with more efficiency, you also save money on the purchase of a smaller heating/cooling system.

If you realize how each element of your home effects the other, you can plan a more energy efficient and cost effective energy using household.

Some Statistics About Savings from IDT Energy

Here are some interesting facts and figures from IDT Energy to keep you informed with up-to-the-minute information on energy savings issues.

•    The vast majority of consumers-92%- believe that business, government and consumers all have an equal responsibility to save on their energy usage.
•    Consumers get their info about energy savings from several sources: 45% read brochures and/or info from their utility companies; 40% get info from friends, neighbors and others; 39% look for the Energy Star label on products they purchase.
•    Eighty percent of Americans believe that the U.S. needs to reduce oil imports.
•    It is being predicted that in the next twenty years energy consumption in the U.S. will increase by almost 40%. That is the amount now being used in the states of California, Texas, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Illinois combined.

. Good insulation should effectively keep either heat or cold, in or out of your house, depending on the weather (season). The most important places to insulate are the space between the doors and the door frames, around the windows, the attic floor or the roof, crawl spaces, and any other place where the outside air can get in and the inside air can get out.

Take note that only 20% of homes built before 1980 are properly insulated.  Check and see if your older home needs its insulation updated so that you will be more comfortable throughout the changing seasons and also so that you can save money on your energy bills.

Good insulation has the added benefit of reducing the amount of external noise that will reach your ears.  In New York this is definitely an important benefit of insulating your house.

In its ongoing desire to help you save energy this summer, IDT Energy has found some slightly creative ways to help you trim your electric bill.

1.    Quick Cook- The most efficient way to cook your food is in the microwave. It takes 2/3 less energy to use than your stove top. Who’d a thunk it?

2.    Dishwasher Ease- Not only does your dishwasher save you time, it actually uses less water than hand washing. Incredible!

3.    The Cupboard is NOT Bare- Did you know that the MORE food in your fridge, the easier it is for the fridge to maintain the cool temperature when you open the door? I didn’t know that!

We hope you stay cool this summer, without using too much electricity, and IDT Energy wishes its customers and friends a great vacation!

Spring is in the air, and in New York that means just one thing: soon it will be summer! Summer is great. Visiting friends, relatives, time off from work to vacation, go to the beach, whatever your heart desires. But in New York we are faced with a special climate which brings hot and humid air into our city, making its otherwise happy citizens distinctly annoyed. How do we deal with this extreme discomfort? Easy. Turn on the air conditioner! From home to car to office to shopping mall, we surround ourselves with cool, dry air, at a huge cost in energy resources.

Not to worry. IDT Energy New York is always on the lookout for great ways to help you save on your electric bill, and we found a few on Frugal Dad.

1.    Keep the room dark with curtains and blinds during the hottest part of the day in rooms that are not in use, like bedrooms, where the light from the sun is not needed.  It would be counterproductive to draw the curtains to keep out the heat to save energy but have to turn on the lights to see.  West facing windows which get the later afternoon sun should especially be curtained.

2.    Allow the hot air that accumulates in your attic a way to get out, either with a fan or a vent, so that the hot air will be drawn away from your ceiling.

3.    Make sure the vent for your clothes dryer is not blocked or clogged with lint. If it is the hot air from the dryer will blow back into your home, adding extra, unwanted heat.

4.    Check your doors’ and windows’ insulation. The strips around the windows and doors can become ruined by the weather, dog scratching, and any other number of ways. The better the insulation the more efficiently your cooling system (and heating system, too) will work.

5.    Compact fluorescent bulbs (CFL) not only save energy by creating light more efficiently than regular incandescent bulbs, they also create less heat. Less heat produced by your lighting means less cooling by your air conditioner needed.

Thanks to Frugal Dad for these great tips.

Air Dry Dishes to Save Energy

In its relentless search for more ways for you to save on your electric and other energy bills,  IDT Energy has compiled some more ideas on how to start saving, right now!

1.    Turn off the heated drying cycle on the dishwasher and let the air dry your dishes instead.

2.    Did you know that washing your clothes in hot water is not only a waste of energy which is needed to heat that water, but it is also harmful to your clothes?  Wash in cold water whenever possible.

3.    Replace your light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. They last longer and use less electricity.

4.    Showers are much more energy efficient than baths, and they save water, too!

5.    Products with an “Energy Star” label have met strict guidelines for energy use efficiency as set by the U.S. Department of Energy.

At IDT Energy we are doing all we can to help people save energy and money now and protect our world for the future.

Stay Cool!

IDT Energy wants you to save on your energy bills with some tips on what you can do right now to achieve this goal.

1.    Get a programmable thermostat which will automatically adjust to keep your house just the right temperature, either comfortably warm or cool.

2.    Not only does it save energy when you reduce the temperature on the thermostat of your hot water heater, it is safer, too. 120 degrees Fahrenheit should be hot enough for just about anyone, without that “scalding effect” you might experience at higher temperatures.

3.    It is more energy efficient to run your dishwasher or washing machine when fully loaded.  Go out and buy more clothes and then you won’t need to do a wash so often!

4.    Keep your electronic equipment hooked up using power strips. When not in use, turn off your equipment with the power strip. This saves your equipment from the constant and wasteful energy draw of “stand-by” mode.

5.    It is incorrect that turning your computer on and off is damaging. Save electricity by turning off your computer when not in use. If you leave your computer for differing amounts of time make sure to set the power save options.