Heading back to school
If you have a programmable thermostat, readjust the temperatures in your home to reflect the time when you all may not be home and the cooling temperatures. Then when weather cools down even more make sure to open your windows and let the fresh air in.
In the summer, you should set the thermostat to 78 degrees or higher when you are home and 85 when you are away.
In the winter set your thermostat at 68 degrees or below when you are at home and when you are asleep try turning it down a few more degrees.
Get your children in the habit of turning off their lights after leaving the rooms before heading off to school in the morning.
Make breakfast and lunches at the same time so that you only have to open the refrigerator for a short period of time.
Make sure that all laptops and video games are unplugged and turned off before leaving for school. These types of electronics continue to use energy even though they are turned off but still plugged in.
Having a rule about not watching TV before homework is done not only helps ensure good grades, it can also save energy and money!
Heading out for Labor Day
Turn down the temperature on the water heater to 120 degrees.
Turn the air conditioner to 85 degrees or higher if nobody is staying in the home. Don’t turn if off because it may cause your refrigerator to work too hard.
Unplug all electronics, especially cable boxes, DVD players and gaming systems.
Don’t forget to unplug small appliances and devices as well, such as the coffee pot, toaster, blenders, toothbrush and razor chargers, and baby monitors.
Close blinds to prevent the sun from heating up your home and helping prevent the air conditioner from kicking in while you are gone.
Clean out your refrigerator and raise the temperature so that your fridge doesn’t work overtime.
Use timers on lights you want to leave on at night so they don’t use electricity all day.
For more tips on how to be wattsmart and our other money saving programs, visit Rocky Mountain Power at:
http://www.wattsmart.com.
