IDT Energy Savings

With summer around the corner, it’s important to start thinking about saving energy and costs.  During the warmer weather months, there are a number of ways that you can save energy by making smart purchases and by being creative.  Here are a few suggestions to get you started whether you use IDT Energy or another company.

If you’re buying an air conditioner for the summer months, look for one with the ENERGY star label.  They are the most energy efficient models that you’ll find, enabling you to cool the house for less money.  A new air conditioner can actually reduce your cooling costs by as much as 20% when compared to an older unit.

While most people don’t realize this, the location of the room air conditioner actually makes a difference.  Try to keep your room air conditioner out of the sun.  Room air conditioners work the best when they are kept cool.  Usually, the best place to install one is on the north-facing wall.

These tips should help you to begin your summer electricity preparations.  Keep it cool while saving money!

You probably already know that a large percent of the total energy you use at home is in the kitchen and laundry room. Did you know that it was as much as one third of home energy usage? That is a big chunk of your budget. Therefore the choices we make in the kitchen and laundry can have a big effect on our energy bill.

Most of that energy is devoured by your refrigerator. So what are some ways to get our fridges to work at peak efficiency, using the least amount of electricity but giving the best results?

Start by setting the thermostat on the fridge to between 38 to 42 degrees Fahrenheit to allow your refrigerator to run about 25% more efficiently.
Another simple and obvious thing to do is to make sure the door of the refrigerator is always kept closed, except for just the few moments when you are removing food out of or putting things into the fridge. Some new refrigerators even come with an alarm that alerts you if the refrigerator door is open for more than just a few moments. If your refrigerator does not have such a device, you can buy one separately.

Understanding your energy usage, and particularly that of your electrical appliances is essential to properly manage your budget and home expenses, and it is also essential in order to become part of the international efforts in looking after our world.

When an appliance is labeled “X watts” this meant that this is the maximum measure of electricity the appliance uses. While some appliances will indeed use this volume of electricity constantly and consistently, refrigerators, for example, only use the maximum energy consumption when the compressor is running. When the fridge is quiet after having reached its goal temperature, it will simply maintain that temperature and it will then be using far less electricity.

IDT Energy, the New York ESCO, is not merely a supplier of energy, but it is concerned with the environment and your pocket. Therefore, IDT focuses on green energy and on consumer education.

In addition to purchasing office equipment labeled with the Energy Star, there are several concrete steps you can take to reduce your power consumption and save money.

Here are few ideas:

•    Turn off your machines when they are not in use. This simple suggestion can save large amounts of energy.

•    The AC adaptor from your computer can be plugged into a power strip that can be turned off when not in use. There is a transformer in the AC adaptor that continuously draws electricity, even when the computer is not plugged into the adaptor. You can also merely unplug the adaptor from the outlet when not in use.

•    New computers can be safely turned off without affecting the life of the computer. It is no longer true, as it was in the days of mainframe computers, that never turning over the computer extends the computers life. Nowadays you can safely turn off your computer, save energy, money and nothing will happen to your computer.

•    When you upgrade your computer, consider getting a laptop instead of a desktop. Laptops use much less energy than desktop computers.

IDT Energy wants its customers to save whenever and wherever they can, so why not explore new ways to save money in the office, too?

Working at home is becoming more and more popular. People who work from home are already saving money on transportation costs, and perhaps the cost of new clothes since you no longer need to dress for the office.  You might be able to also save on childcare costs, the cost of purchasing expensive lunches, and other types of expenses which are no longer needed when you are employed at home.

However you might need expensive equipment in order to do the job properly, such as computers, printers, faxes, etc, which are all energy consumers.
So how can you save money on your energy bill in your home office?

Start with the Energy Star. Office equipment labeled with the Energy Star can in some cases save you as much as 90% to run the product. The average savings on most office equipment is still impressive; as much as 50% can usually be saved with Energy Star labeled office equipment compared to ordinary equipment.

In addition to this respectable energy savings, these office devices also reduce air-conditioning loads, annoying background noise from fans and transformers and electromagnetic fields from computer monitors.

In our last post IDT Energy discussed ways to get the heat into your house in a cost saving manner, such as exposing your home to daytime sunshine, lowering your thermostat and installing a programmable thermostat.

Here are some ideas on how to keep the heat you’ve paid so dearly for to stay inside where it belongs:

• When is the last time you checked the insulation in your attic? How about your ceilings, exterior walls, basement walls, crawl spaces and floors? Make sure the insulation is adequate for the climate that you live in. New York can have extremely harsh winters, and good insulation can make a huge difference in your heating costs.
• Check for air leaks around windows and doors, then use caulk and weather stripping to seal them.
• Be sure to replace the filters on your furnace regularly to keep the warm air flowing into your house efficiently.
• IDT Energy wishes you and your family a wonderful warm winter in New York.

Winter in New York is always wonderful. However it can be a challenge to stay warm and cozy without breaking the bank. IDT Energy has some helpful tips to maintain a comfortable and affordable New York winter.

When considering how to control heating costs, its best to take the broad view of the entire house:

• •    During the day the sun is in the south. By keeping the south facing curtains and drapes open, the sun will shine in and help keep your house warm. Don’t forget to close the drapes at night to keep out the cold chill that can come into the house through the glass.
• •    Consider turning down your thermostat a bit. Try to maintain comfort at a lower temperature.
• •    Even better than merely turning down your thermostat, install a programmable thermostat. This handy device can raise the temperature in your home when you are there; lower it when you’re not; and maintain another temperature when you are asleep, all completely automatically. You can actually reduce your heating bill by 10% by just lowering the temperature on your thermostat from 72 degrees down to 65 when you are sleeping or out of the house.

The fuel you use to cook with is one concern, as we have been discussing, but there several other issues to consider before firing up the grill in order to increase the green quotient of your meal.

• Stick with food that is locally grown and seasonal. The less distance your fruit and vegetables travel to your table, the more energy (and often money) you can save.
• Use a bowl when washing your fruits and veggies before use. This simple act uses less water, and afterward you can use the water again to water plants around the house.
• With a bit of planning ahead, you can defrost overnight in the fridge rather than immediately in the microwave.
• Are your guests bringing something along? Ask each guest to bring something different to avoid wasteful leftovers.
• If you keep your food covered when its outside you can then save them in the fridge for the next day as delicious leftovers.

IDT Energy wishes you and your family a great “end of summer” Barbecue day!

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.

Here are some more great ideas to help you save money and energy around the house, from IDT Energy.

•    Many electronic appliances, such as microwaves, TVs, VCRs, DVD players and more use energy even when not in use. Together these idle “vampires” consume 5 % of the nation’s domestic energy, costing consumers a staggering $3 billion each year.
•    An average American family spends over $200 on air conditioning. In some places in the southern states households quite easily can spend double that amount.
•    Over the lifetime of an air conditioner, only one quarter is spent on the purchase price. The rest, ¾ of the cost, is spent on running it.
•    Look for the Energy Star when replacing your old air conditioner and save about 20% on your cooling expenses.
•    Home office equipment and other electronic equipment can be powered down with their “sleep” feature to save as much as $70 a year on energy costs.
•    Wash your clothes in warm or cool water instead of hot water to save 80-85 per cent of the energy cost of laundering your clothes. Your clothes will be just as clean, and you’ll be a lot richer.