Energy Saving Tips

Lighting

• Reduce operating hours in low use areas by switching the lights off or using occupancy sensors. If a room is not being used for ten minutes, shut the lights off.
• Reduce the lighting in overly lit or unused areas. A four-lamp fluorescent fixture uses more than 11 cents worth of electricity in an eight-hour day.
• Replace incandescent lamps with compact fluorescent lamps in light fixtures and exit signs. They use a quarter of the energy to produce the same amount of light.
• Upgrade fluorescent fixtures with T-8 lamps, electronic ballasts and reflectors. A four-lamp fluorescent fixture uses 190 watts. A two-lamp T-8 fixture with an electronic ballast and reflector uses as little as 66 watts, or 65% less energy.
• Eliminating three watts of lighting energy reduces air conditioning energy usage by one watt.

Air Conditioning and Heating

• Set thermostats at a comfortable 24°C (76°F) for cooling and 20°C (68°F) for heating.
• Install automatic thermostats on all heating and cooling equipment. This reduces cooling and heating requirements during unoccupied hours and could produce savings of 10%.
• Install solar film on windows exposed to direct sunlight to reduce air conditioning load by as much as 30%.
• Have your heating and cooling systems checked annually. A properly maintained system will maintain employee and customer comfort, save energy and extend the life of equipment.

Office Equipment

• Office equipment can account for 10% to 20% of the energy used in a small business or office.
• Add energy use as part of the criteria for selecting copiers, printers, computers and terminals.
• Assign one employee the job of ensuring that all equipment is shut off at the end the day.
• A laptop computer uses less energy than a desktop PC.
• When purchasing a computer ensure that it has an automatic power down function.

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