Beat the heat: Cool tips for hot days

HONOLULU—Summer is here and the hottest months of the year are still ahead. And just because you’re hot doesn’t mean you should be wasting any more energy than you need to. Whether you’re at home or in the office, there are a number of things you can do get past the heat.

The Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) recommends cutting back on appliances that use the most electricity like air conditioning, water heating, refrigeration, lighting, and home entertainment equipment. Concentrate on conserving energy from these appliances first, as they will yield the largest reward for your effort. Other high-energy users in the home are swimming pool pumps, second refrigerators including wine chillers, and hot tubs or spas. Periodic maintenance also maximizes appliance lifespan and ensures your appliances are running at their best.

Here are more energy-saving tips from HECO, which are also available at www.heco.com or by calling (808) 543-7511 to have a copy mailed:

Cooling

* Open the windows to let Hawaii’s fresh trade winds cool your home or turn on a fan instead of using the air conditioner, a savings of approximately $80 per month assuming your A/C unit is 12,000 Btu/H, EER 10.8, and running eight hours per day.

* Maintain your air conditioner for maximum efficiency by cleaning its filter and vents regularly. Replace filters that look worn.

* Only use your AC when the room is occupied.

* A key factor to air conditioning is sizing your unit properly. Too small or large a unit can cause it to not perform optimally, increasing your electrical use. Visit heco.com under “Residential Services” to use the air conditioning sizing calculator and find out which air conditioner is right for you.

Water heaters

* Install a solar water heater. A well-designed and properly sized solar water heater can reduce water heating energy use by 80 to 90 percent.

* If your water heater is more than 10 years old, it is probably not more than 80 percent efficient. An old water heater can operate for years at very low
efficiencies before it finally fails. One way to reduce water-heating costs is to replace your old water heater with a new, higher-efficiency model. New energy-efficient water heaters have thick insulation, better heating element placement, and other energy-saving features that make them less expensive to operate than older models.

* Take short five-minute showers instead of tub baths. Filling the bathtub full of water
uses over 25 gallons of hot water.

* Cutting just two minutes per shower could save up to 1,533 kWh and $460 per year.

* If you have a solar water heater, remember to properly maintain it. Improperly maintained solar water heaters can contribute to large
increases on your monthly bill.

* Install low-flow restrictors in older faucets and showerheads. They will reduce water flow to one-to-three gallons per minute, thus reducing your
hot water costs.

Refrigerators and Freezers

* Clean out your second refrigerator and turn it off for one month to see energy savings and to determine if a second refrigerator is necessary. You’ll save between $180 to $1,080 per year if it is a model made prior to 1980. For models made between 1980 to 2001 savings can be between $144
to $720 per year.

* Consider that the efficiency of refrigerators and freezers has improved considerably. New efficiency standards went into effect in 2001, and older units are typically two to three times more expensive to run than a new unit.

* Make sure your refrigerator door seals are airtight. Test them by closing the door over a piece of paper or dollar bill so that it is located across the seal. If you can pull the paper or bill out easily, the latch may need adjustment or the seal may need replacing.

* Allow ample space on each side of the refrigerator/freezer and around condenser coils for air circulation. Air flow increases energy performance.

* Unplug the refrigerator and clean its condenser coils regularly (unless you have a no-clean condenser model). Your refrigerator will run for shorter
periods with cleaner coils.

Lighting

* Choose ENERGY STAR® qualified compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) as they typically use 75 percent less energy and last up to 10 times longer than standard incandescent light bulbs. Changing one regular 100-watt bulb to an energy-saving CFL can save 80 kWh and more than $24 per year per bulb, when used three hours a day.

* Lightly dust compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) regularly for optimal performance.

Clothes Dryers

* Hanging your laundry on the clothesline instead of using the dryer eight times a week will save up to $29 per month.

* Dry full loads instead of several smaller loads. Avoid running the dryer unnecessarily for one or two items.

* Clean the dryer’s lint filter before each load to better circulate air and maintain the unit’s efficiency.

* Check the vent or duct occasionally for obstructions, which can add to drying time and energy used.

Electronics

* Use a power strip to eliminate energy sneakers (phantom loads) by conveniently turning off devices not in use, such as cell phone chargers and other electronics. Such devices use standby power when not in use.

Pools and Spa

* Consult a pool supplier to ensure you have the smallest, right-sized pump for your pool. A 0.75-horsepower or smaller pump is generally sufficient for residential pools.

* Reduce a pool pump’s electricity use by up to 40 percent by changing to a larger filter, increasing the diameter or decreasing the length of the pipes, and replacing 90-degree elbow pipes with flexible pipes.

* Consider reducing pool pump filtration time to six hours per day. If the water does not seem clean, increase the filtration time in 30-minute increments until it does.

* Install a timer to activate your pool pump in short periods throughout the day as opposed to having the pump on for six hours straight, which allows
debris to build up the remaining 18 hours.

* Regularly clean debris from intake grates. Clogged drains require pumps to work harder, using more electricity.

For more ways to cut costs by saving energy, visit Visit heco.com.