There’s a hip new way to save energy, and it is making waves in the UK. The Wattson is a sleek and chic device that measures a household’s energy usage in real-time and displays it in watts per hour or British Pounds per year. The system works in two parts. The first is a tool that attaches to the electric meter, measuring the current amount of electricity being used by the household. This tool then communicates wirelessly to the second, which is an attractive display placed prominently inside the house- on a kitchen counter, perhaps. This allows the occupant to see how their lifestyle affects energy use- watching it spike when the air conditioning is turned on, seeing how low it can get when the home is empty. Also, the lights underneath will turn from blue to red if the home’s energy usage is running unusually high, giving the viewer a quick look into the home’s overall energy health.

What is one of the simplest and easiest ways to start saving energy immediately? Hibernation! If bears can do it, why not your computer? Move over Goldilocks, because we’re about to show you an energy saving tip that is juuuust right.

When was the last time you washed your dishes at 3am? Probably never, and yet if you have a tank-based water heater a huge percentage of your monthly utility bill goes to heating water at times when you don’t need it. Tankless* (or “on-demand”) water heaters can save you money in three major ways: they provide hot water only when you need it, where you need it and do not suffer from standby (when heated water is just sitting in the tank) heat loss.

Computers are not the biggest energy hogs in your house, but, depending on how much you use them, they can become a significant cost. If you use your computer for smaller jobs like word processing and emailing, and if you’re using a laptop or smaller desktop, chances are your computer is using moderate amounts of energy. Your computer’s energy use will increase with its size and with the complexity of the tasks it performs - playing high-tech games will strain your computer and it will suck up power.

When you conduct over 3000 Home Energy Audits per year you’re bound to run into some interesting opinions. Many people believe certain things about home energy consumption that are just not true. These “Energy Myths” have often been inherited from one generation to the next. “Grandma always said…” is the typical preface to many of these energy myths. But a whole lot has changed in the last 50-100 years that makes grandma’s recommendations obsolete. Sorry Grandma. So after hearing many different Energy Myths from many different energy customers, the staff of Conservation Consultants got together and compiled some of the most common ones into a list of… drum roll please…

The term “solar panel” refers either to panels that heat water or to those that power electric devices. Water-heating panels have been around at least since the 1920s, but their prominence has recently been diluted by the increasing commercial success of photovoltaic (electric) panels. Whichever type you’re interested in, the solar panel will be the central element of your solar power system. It is the component of the system that actually absorbs the sun’s energy.

Because your solar power system depends on absorbing sunlight, the placement of your panels is of utmost importance. Ideally, in the northern hemisphere, panels should be affixed to the south face of your house, the direction from which the sun will shine most of the day. If they are slightly to the east or west of true south, they will retain about 90% of their absorptive capability, but if the configuration of your house prevents you from orienting them more or less to the south, you should consider remodeling or choosing another energy source.

Building a solar system is a substantial financial commitment. It has both fixed and variable costs. That’s why many people choose to start out with a small system and build on as they can afford to do so. The federal government offers modest tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements, including solar power, and many states also offer tax credits or other incentives, which can reduce your costs significantly. Even so, payback periods on solar power systems are long and extremely variable.Before you install a photovoltaic system, or any alternative energy system, make your home as energy-efficient as you can (link). Every dollar you spend on increasing your home’s energy efficiency will save you between three and five dollars on the cost of your solar power system.

On-Grid: The energy produced via a residential renewable energy system both feeds off of and into the outside utility’s system.

One of the most immediately appealing ways to conserve energy in your home is through passive solar heating. It is a method completely distinct from the use of solar cells; passive solar designs don’t convert energy - they just make better use of the stuff that’s already there! To take full advantage of the ways you can use the sun to heat your home, it’s best if you can design it from the ground up, so passive solar heating is most useful for buildings in the planning stages. But through moderate re-modeling you can help your existing home make much better use of natural light and heat.