Tips For Energy Conservation At Work
Simple Measures to reduce energy consumption at work.
WATER CONSERVATION
- Avoid pre-rinsing dishes before putting in dishwasher. It can save up to $70 a year.
- Reduce numbers of opening & closing of water taps for taking small quantities of water. This avoids frequent start & stop of water pumps there by reducing power consumption.
- When washing hands only use water when necessary.
LIGHTING AND EQUIPMENT
- Turn of lights in areas that do not require constant lighting.
- Turn off office or meeting room lights when not occupied.
- Periodic cleaning of desk lamps and light fixtures can save up to 15% of lighting energy.
- Use task lighting over desks (i.e. Table Lamps for reading) etc., so that activities can be carried on without illuminating entire rooms.
- Switch off computer monitors, charging apparatus, printers and photocopiers when not in use. (Remember that Information Services requires that computers be left on overnight to allow for software updates, etc.) Computers may be switched off over the weekend).
- Ensure that energy management features are activated and maximized on office equipment, so that they will power down to low energy consuming idle modes when not in active use.
- Energy Star monitors have a low-power sleep mode that only uses between 2 to 10 watts.
- When printing click on collate to ensure double sided printing.
- Do not keep TV, tape recorder and music system in standby mode. Power switch of these should be off when not in use to save electricity. If you turn off the TV set instead of leaving it on stand-by, you save up to 70 kilowatt hours per year.
- Reduce the usage of elevators. Maximize use of stairs for coming down.
- Avoid use of Electrical appliances like Hot Plates, Toasters, Water Heaters, Milk warmers, grinders/mixers/blenders, Ovens etc., these being energy guzzlers.
- Do not shut and open the door of the refrigerator frequently. More electricity is used in doing so.
- Keep the fridge as full as possible.
- Make sure that the refrigerator is not placed against outside facing wall or walls exposed to direct sunlight.
- Keep your refrigerator and freezer at the right temperature. If they are only 2-3 degrees colder than necessary, your energy consumption may go up by approx 25%.
- Make sure the door is sealed tightly. If it's not, you're wasting energy.
- Do not put uncovered liquids in the refrigerator. The liquids give off vapours that add to the compressor workload.
- Allow hot food to cool off before putting it in the refrigerator.
HEATING AND COOLING
- Take advantage of the sun: let the sun heat and light your space when it's needed, but use window blinds to reduce heat gain and lower air conditioning requirements. Close blind in un-used rooms.
- Leave an extra sweater or fleece and socks at work.
- Close cooling vents and keep doors to unused rooms closed.
