Going Green

Heating and Cooling

Keep your units clean and temperature set moderatly

Some suggestions that can help you save big bucks (10%-50% annually) and be energy efficient as well as environmentally friendly are:

  • Change your air filter every three months
  • Tune up/annual check-up on HVAC unit
  • Consider Energy Star heating/cooling units

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To help you decide if it’s appropriate to change out your HVAC unit.

Kitchen Appliances

Keep your appliances up to date

Remember, saving energy prevents pollution. In most households, the refrigerator is the single biggest energy consuming kitchen appliance. Replacing a refrigerator bought in 1990 with a new ENERGY STAR qualified model would save enough energy to light the average household for nearly four months.

  • Energy Star refrigerators consume up to 20% less energy than required by federal standards and 40% less energy than conventional models sold in 2001.
  • Energy Star freezers use at least 20% less energy than required by federal standards.

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For more information about energy star products.

Lighting

Check your fixtures regularly and upgrade your lightbulbs

Another easy way you can cut costs while helping the environment is to change your light bulbs. Lighting accounts for about 20% of the electric bill, and can be rectified simply by changing out a bulb.

  • CFLs are available in various shapes and sizes. Look for spirals, reflectors, globes, and other specialty bulbs.
  • Energy Star also has lighting fixtures available, including table lamps, ceiling fixtures, pendant fixtures, and recessed cans.
  • When using decorative lights, search for energy efficient strings that come in white or colors.

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For more detail on saving money with lighting smarts.

Only Way Realty wants to continue the home buying relationship with our clients by offering such educational tools as listed above. We believe going Green helps everyone, and the benefits are long lasting.

HELPFUL TIPS

Going Green Tips

If you’re not interested in replacing your refrigerator at this time, you can use these helpful tips provided by Energy Star to reduce the amount of energy your units use:

  • Position your refrigerator away from a heat source, such as an oven, a dishwasher, or direct sunlight from a window.
  • To allow air to circulate around the condenser coils, leave a space between the wall or cabinets and the refrigerator or freezer and keep the coils clean.
  • Make sure the door seals are airtight.
  • Keep your refrigerator between 35 and 38 degrees Fahrenheit and your freezer at 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Minimize the amount of time the refrigerator door is open.
  • Recycle older or second refrigerators.

Please visit the sites listed above as well as the additional resources sites below to help further the Green cause.