Everyone talks about “carbon footprint,” but it’s difficult to know what you can change in your daily life to make things environmentally better. Simple changes get you started. Zero in on electricity as these changes are some of the easiest to make.
Most people currently use incandescent light bulbs at home. While these have replaced older types of bulbs that used far too much energy, the incandescent ones aren’t nearly as good as LED ones. LED diode light bulbs use almost no energy at all to light up a room and emit almost no heat. You get all the light you need for a fraction of the cost and reduce the heat in your home.
Switching your lights off when you are not in a room reduces the amount of energy you consume. The raw power created to make the energy you need to power light in a room you are not using is wasted. Additionally, unplug all electrical items when not in use. This includes your toasters, coffee maker, microwave, TV, etc. You can save thousands of kilowatt hours and prevent the waste of coal, air power from a wind farm, solar energy, or however else your power company creates electricity.
Turn your water heater temperature down to 120 degrees. This would be a standard tank heater, not a tankless water heater. It can save 550 pounds of CO2 every year, a big impact on the carbon footprint in your home.
Turn the thermostat up in warmer weather and down in colder weather. It seems counterintuitive to human comfort levels, but it actually saves energy by drawing on less electricity to heat and cool your home. If you can stand the heat in summer, go without air conditioning entirely.
