Six Star Magazine Six Star Magazine Summer 2006 | Page 25

FEATURE

Fix leaky taps! A tap dripping every second wastes 720 litres of
water per month – enough for 32 showers.
Install faucet aerators on your faucets. Aerators mix air into the
water flow and reduce water consumption by 25-50% per tap.
On the topic of water, do you want to know if you have leaks
anywhere else in your home? Read your water meter before and
after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter
does not read exactly the same, there’s a leak somewhere.

Kitchen central
Everyone’s favourite room is also the biggest energy user.
Use the microwave instead of the stovetop or oven whenever
possible. Microwaves use between 1/5 and 1/2 as much energy.
When microwaving, food cooks faster when placed on the outer
edges of a rotating tray, allowing more microwaves to interact with
the food.
resist opening the door! Each
peek will cost about 25% of the heat inside.
A gas stove with an electric ignition (piezo) will use 40% less
gas than one with a continuous pilot light.
Use foil reflectors under the elements on an electric stove to
reflect heat back at the pots.
Induction cooking uses 90% of the energy produced compared
to only 55% for a gas burner and 65% for traditional electric ranges.
Induction cooktops have the same instant control as gas and are
the fastest to heat and cook food.
Close a five dollar bill into the door so that it’s half in and half out.
If you can pull the bill out easily, the latch may need adjusting
or the seal may need replacing.

Don’t put hot foods directly into the refrigerator and cover
foods and liquids. Foods and especially liquids will release
moisture and cause the refrigerator to use more energy.
Full freezers operate more efficiently. If your freezer isn’t full, fill
plastic containers with water and freeze them. This will also help in
the event of a power outage.
look for
EnerGuide (Canadian) or ENERGY STAR (US-made) approved
products. When shopping for a new range, models with a selfcleaning oven are more efficient because they have more insulation.
If you clean your oven only two or three times a year, a self-cleaning
unit will likely save energy compared with a regular oven. Front
loading washers use 50% less energy, less water, less soap, and
they are better for your clothes. Side-by-side refrigerators use more
energy than the standard models with freezers on the top. Bottomfreezer models are slightly more efficient than top freezer models.
Chest freezers are more energy efficient than upright models, as
cold air stays inside when the lid is opened.

Your home office
You already use a lot of brain energy in this room so why not cut
back on all other types of energy used?
Turn equipment off when it is not in use. It is a myth that
computers use large amounts of energy when starting up. It is much
more cost-effective to shut the computer down when you are
finished using it. Also, ink-jet printers use far less energy than laser
printers and desktops consume ten times more energy than laptops.
Many kinds of equipment have chargers. When they are not
charging, unplug them, as they draw some power whenever they
are plugged in.

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