The Minnesota Energy Challenge Blog

The Energy Bills

internemma — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:55:53 +0000

In the past few months I have noticed that my status as an energy nerd has significantly increased, which might be part of why I love these videos so much. But they are also funny, clever and get a good point across. As a homeowner you have a choice between a BIG energy bill and a small energy bill. “The Energy Bills” videos are Energy Impact Illinois attempt at highlighting the many simple and effective ways homeowners can save energy.

Enjoy. I recommend all 4 “episodes”.

Happy Friday everyone!

Mushroom Wall Chargers

internemma — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:03:04 +0000

New technology alert! This handy little battery charger developed by Braketron Inc. could help you cut down on your vampire energy waste.

As you know, leaving a charger plugged in the wall when it is not charging anything – or when a device is fully charged – wastes energy. Many of us pay for this wasted energy because it is easy to forget to unplug your chargers all of the time. We are in LUCK. The Mushroom GreenZero Wall Charger automatically detects when a device is fully charged or unplugged and shut off. When it is shut off it will consume zero vampire energy! When you want to charge your device again, you just push the big green button- which is conveniently easy to push with your foot.

The prices start around $25.00 and comes in three forms- USB port, Micro USB port and Apple 30 pin for all your iDevices. There is also a portable mini charger. The Mushroom charger should be out for purchase in March.

::Source

But I don’t want to get out of the shower – It’s COLD.

internemma — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:25:45 +0000

The other day I found this wonderful and hilarious picture. It sure rings true to me – especially gaining courage to step into the cold air.

In the winter a hot shower is a wondrous piece of therapy to escape the constant Minnesota cold. But this is just a plug to encourage you to keep up the tough Minnesotan behavior and stick to a five minute shower when you can. There’s nothing wrong with treating yourself to a longer shower every once and a while – and taking a five minute shower is a great way to start your day the energy efficiency way. There is always hot tea to cozy up to!

The Why and How of Compact Florescent Light Bulb Recycling

internemma — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:15:51 +0000

Once your compact florescent light (CFL) bulb has served its energy saving duty- it does have to be recycled. WHY? CFLs have a small amount of mercury in them – 4mg or 1/5 the amount in a typical watch battery. When you throw a CFL away it will break and release the mercury. You can prevent this mercury being released into the air by recycling the bulb! It is also the law in Minnesota to recycle them. When a CFL is recycled all parts are separated including the glass and mercury which can be reused (source).

Despite the mercury in CFLs, using them actually helps decrease the amount of mercury released into the air by power plants. After all, CFLs require 1/4 of the electricity of traditional incandescent light bulbs – and they last 7-10 times longer. To power that incandescent bulb, a power plant will release up to 10 mg of mercury into the air – almost 5 times more than a CFL!. (Minnesota Pollution Control).

So where do you recycle CFLs? Most hardware stores and retailers such as Menards, Lowes, Home Depot, and IKEA will recycle your CFL for free. I recycled one for free this weekend at my local ACE hardware! Here is a list of small retailers in Minnesota that recycle CFLs.

EPA

Picture source: Science Blogs

Whats with all this moisture on my windows?

internemma — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:09:05 +0000

Don’t replace your windows just yet - you might just have too much moisture in the air. There are various reasons and solutions for high humidity in your home:

“In general, problems will occur whenever there is an imbalance between the moisture input to your home and the ventilation rate of your home. The solution often lies with some combination of reducing the moisture input, increasing the ventilation, and improving the thermal performance of the building materials.” Home Energy Resource Minnesota

Our homes are like bodies- they need to BREATHE. If your home is too air tight, it prevents your home from breathing well. Humidity levels change with the temperature outside. Below are the recommended indoor humidity levels depending on the lowest temperature outside:

Outside Temperature (F) Indoor Maximum Rh (% humidity)

20+ 35%

0 25%

20- 15%

To measure your homes humidity level you need a hygrometer. They are fairly inexpensive (this one runs about $20) and are available at all hardware stores. If the humidity is too high, the quickest way to help lower it is to use ventilation - such as turning on your kitchen, laundry room, and bathroom exhaust fan.

For more detailed overview: Home Energy Resource Minnesota

EPA Moisture Control

If you want a home assessment to help evaluate the problem further contact http://mbpa.us/

Hey, it’s Radon Action Month! (So what does that mean?)

internemma — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:53:17 +0000

January is National Radon Action Month! Radon is a odorless, colorless gas that comes up from the earth and seeps into your home. When in the home radon can damage the lining of your lungs, which can cause cancer. In fact, radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and causes over 21,000 lung cancer death a year.

Now that I have sufficiently freaked you out, let me reassure you that it is easy to test your home’s radon level and fairly inexpensive to fix a radon problem if you have one. Because Minnesota’s geology provides an ongoing source of radon, and the climate affects how homes are built – 1 in 3 Minnesota homes are said to have raised levels of radon.

1. Test your home for radon

You can order a test kit online, or purchase it from your local home improvement store- shouldn’t cost any more than $25.
If you live in Minneapolis pick up a low cost test kit offered by the city.
Follow the instructions on the kit and send it in for laboratory testing.

2. Determine if there is a problem

Radon is not regulated in Minnesota, so it is up to you to decide if your homes level is high enough to fix. Recommended action level is 4.0 pCi/L. If you determine you want to take action contact a radon mitigation professional to help you figure out which way is best for you home to reduce the radon level.

Radon (Annual Average) Level	Additional Lung Cancer Risk for People Who Never Smoked
20 pCi/L	36 out of 1,000
10 pCi/L	18 out of 1,000
8 pCi/L	15 out of 1,000
4 pCi/L	7 out of 1,000
2 pCi/L	4 out of 1,000

Stay safe everyone and test your home for radon this month!

::EPA Radon Action ::Minnesota department of health- Radon ::Radonmonth.org

A Water-Powered Clock?

internemma — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 15:45:37 +0000

What? A water powered clock?! Yes, Bedol has come up with a digital clock that uses the electrons in water to generate a small electrolytic battery. More on how that works here. I am no electrolytic battery expert, but that sounds pretty cool to me. My first thought about this clock was, “oh man, no one is going to want fill up their bedside clock every day”. Thankfully I was wrong because the water (and a drop of lemon juice) only needs to be refreshed every 6 months. Couldn’t be much easier than that.

This is my favorite design but they come in other sleek shapes and colors. Go check out the selection of designs and get excited to have an appliance that uses no electricity!

A Couple Energy Saving Myths

internemma — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 15:06:14 +0000

1. MYTH: You can save energy by keeping your fridge full, closing it quickly, and regularly cleaning the coils.

Actually, all three of these actions are not worth your trouble. In the study done by Balsnik it was found:

Total use from ALL fridge door openings adds up to <50 kWh/yr, or about $5.
Putting water bottles in your fridge to keep it full adds up to <0.1 kWh/yr.
Cleaning coils – no actual savings found.

A better way to save money? How about unplugging that second fridge or freezer, especially if you are only storing a couple things in it. Unplugging a typical fridge from 1990 will save you about $171 a year and a fridge from 1993-2000 would be a savings of around $83. Now that is some quick and easy savings! Find out how much you would save with this Energy Star fridge calculator.

2. MYTH: The best way to improve your home’s energy efficiency is to get new windows

Think again! About 20% of your heating and cooling costs are caused from heat loss/gain through your windows. A good example of cost savings is if you are spending $2,000 on utilities a year, you can save about $100 a year with energy efficient windows. That is not insignificant, but there are better ways to save more energy and money.

“Don’t replace your windows expecting the energy savings to pay for the project! If, however, you need to replace the windows — they are rotting, they don’t work, you are remodeling part of the house — then by all means spend the extra money to get energy-efficient windows.” +source

Alternative- insulate your walls and or attic. Although walls and roof are not as easy of a culprit to blame as your drafty windows-the largest part of your house that is in direct contact with the cold air are your walls and roof! Insulating your walls can save you about $530 a year!

Know Your Water Footprint.

internemma — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:18:28 +0000

While I was browsing my favorite website (other then the Minnesota Energy Challenge of course) – National Geographic environment – I found a couple great interactive features that help you learn about how much water you are using. They helped me realize where I can save water other than the obvious shorter showers.

Hidden Water Use - Who knew that 1 pound of cheese requires 600 gallons of water?! I sure didn’t. This feature shows how much water other common foods and products use.
Water Footprint Calculator - The average individual in America uses 2,000 gallons a day. How do you measure up to the average use? This will also help you see what category you can to improve on the most; home, diet, stuff or energy.
Water Wiz Game-A great interactive game for all those junior environmental smarties.

Of course, there are some good non-internet resources as well. This water footprint pocket guide is from the University of Minnesota: keep it in your wallet to remind you to think twice before you buy that latte that took 53 gallons of water to make.

What is Your New Years Energy Resolution?

internemma — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:55:51 +0000

The New year iss a great time to set some new goals for reducing energy waste in your home. After all, your energy saving resolution doesn’t have to be difficult or take a lot of time to make a real difference! Here are a few ways you can achieve your energy-saving goals in 2012.

Goal: Reduce Phantom Load

This is an easy one folks – and it could reduce your energy consumption by 5 to 20 %! Phantom load is the sneaky, constant drain of electricity by electronics left plugged in when you’re not using them. If it has a digital clock, uses a remote or has a little light that tells you it’s ready to turn on, then it can have phantom load – which means you end up paying for electricity that you never get to use.

Luckily, it’s easy to stop phantom load with power strips! Start with your entertainment system and home office. Place the strip where you can easily reach it, then turn off the strip when you are not using those electronics. There are pretty cool smart power strips now that can make fighting phantom load even easier!

Important note: If unplugging something, or plugging it into a power strip and turning it off means you’ll have to re-program it every single time (cable boxes, I’m looking at you), don’t worry about it! Just focus on electronics that don’t need to be re-programmed, like TVs and computers.

Goal: Use more compact fluorescent light bulbs

A good starting goal is to install 5 more compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). First pick the lights in your home that are used the most such as your hall, kitchen or family room. This way you will get the largest benefit from the CFL. Then pick the right type of CFL bulb. A great way to help you with this process use the Light Bulb Finder app. It helps you find the best CFL replacement- and you can even buy the exact bulb online directly from the app. Any way you do it, make sure you get EnergyStar rated bulbs!

Goal: Get rid of the beer fridge

This is a great goal because you can save over $100 dollars a year!

If you are an Xcel customer they will even pay YOU $35 to have someone from Xcel remove the fridge for you. Can’t get much easier than that, eh? If you are unsure if you want to get rid of the fridge completely, unplug it while you do not need it. For instance, if for 90% of the year you have 5 beers in the basement fridge, move those beers upstairs and unplug the fridge. When it is needed, just plug it back in a couple days ahead. This way you will still save a significant amount of money and energy.

Goal: Use my car less

The best part of this is that you will feel better by being active AND have more money in your pocket! To do this you can start small. Choose one trip you usually take a week and plan to walk, bike or bus. If you already do this once a week, maybe increase it to twice a week – it can really add up over the year. Here are some helpful websites:

::Metro Transit

::Bike Walk Twin Cities