I often end up on subscription lists for various newsletters. One I noticed in my mailbox today was from Little Grad [1]. It’s the Little Insights Newsletter. It had some great tips on energy savings:
College Saving Tip: Heating Water Energy
Consider installing a drain water waste heat recovery system. A recent DOE (Dept Of Energy) study showed energy savings of 25% – 30% for water heating using such a system. If you save only $15 a month, you could save over $4,500 in 15 years. — EERE.Energy.gov [2]
Did You Know: Air It Dry
If your dishwasher has an air-dry setting, choose it instead of the heat-dry setting. You’ll knock 15% to 50% off your energy use. If there’s no air-dry setting, turn the dishwasher off after its final rinse and open the door. The dishes will dry without using any extra electricity. — Seattle.gov [3]
I’m going to have to check on the drain water waste heat recovery system. When we built our house, we built an energy efficient green-built home, but I’m not sure if we have this recovery system. We do have some kind of hot water “loop” but I’m not sure exactly how it works.
Using the air-dry setting on the dishwasher, however, should be a relatively simple idea to put into action!
Here’s some more posts on energy saving tips:
- Ten Easy Energy Savings Tips [4]
- Slash Your Winter Heating Bills – 10 Inexpensive Ways to Save Big This Winter [5] @ Cash Money Life
- Frugality in Practice: Keeping Warm in Winter [6] @ Get Rich Slowly