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from Natural Life magazine
January/February 2009 There’s no need to forget your commitment to green living just because the economy seems to be in crisis. Nor do you need to suffer! In fact, a green lifestyle can save your family money. And it can even make you healthier. Here are just a few ways to conserve energy and save money at the same time.
Setting your thermostat wisely is probably the simplest and least expensive way to save energy. A programmable model is a good investment, saving you up to 15 percent on your heating bill. But even if you have the regular kind, you can still manually regulate the temperature when you’re not home. Adjusting temperatures five to eight degrees F (down in winter, up in summer) can help save energy if you’re going to be away from home for several hours. Even when you’re home in winter, you can add another blanket at night and wear a sweater during the day. Lower water heater temperature to 120 degrees F (49C); any higher than that risks scalding anyway. For each 10 degrees F reduction in water temperature, you can save between three and five percent in energy costs. Insulate your water heater. Unless your water heater’s storage tank is already well-insulated, (a tank that’s warm to the touch needs more insulation), adding insulation to it can reduce standby heat losses by 25 to 45 percent and save up to ten percent in water heating costs. You can buy an easy-to-install kit at a hardware store; it will pay for itself in about a year. Sealing large air leaks is another simple and inexpensive way to save energy and money, but it does take some effort. According to Natural Resources Canada, air leaks can bleed as much warm air from your house as an open window would – a big open window: In a pre-1945 house, the air leaks can add up to the equivalent of a hole in your wall 21 inches in diameter and, in a modern conventional home, 14 inches. Finding the leaks is easy... To read the rest of this article, subscribe to Natural Life's digital edition, which includes access to this and other back issues.
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