Wow, a lot of crack smoking out there. Heat your house with light bulbs? Insulate your pipes with window plastic? I bet your cave is nice and comfy.
Compact fluorescents are a good idea, but Lights of America have a high failure rate. Phillips, GE, and Panasonic are more reliable brands. And they have warrantees on their bulbs.
Concentrate on the biggest energy users in your place-- typically water heating, refrigeration and then things like lighting, small appliances, etc. To avoid ghost loads (from things like instant-on TV's, VCR's that have a cute clock on them), put your appliances on power strips. flip the switch and they are really off. Easier than plugging and unplugging everything.
Insulate your water heater with an insulating blanket, whether it is gas or electric. Be careful to not hinder any air flow for gas water heaters. Insulate your pipes with the foam tubes, not window plastic. You can get them for about 6 ft/$1. Get as thick as possible. Concentrate on the hot pipes and the first 3-5 feet of the cold (coming from the water heater).
Insulation in your attic is a good idea, but is a bigger expense. Put at least R-38 in your attic. Cellulose is good for most of the country, fiberglass more common. If you are doing it yourself, fiberglass is easier to install.
Read magazines like Home Power, Home Energy, Solar Today. And turn your appliances off when you are not using them. One last thought-- hang up your laundry. If all Americans hung their laundry instead of using dryers, we could turn off all of the nuclear power plants in the US.
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Wow, a lot of crack smoking out there. Heat your house with light bulbs? Insulate your pipes with window plastic? I bet your cave is nice and comfy. Compact fluorescents are a good idea, but Lights of America have a high failure rate. Phillips, GE, and Panasonic are more reliable brands. And they have warrantees on their bulbs. Concentrate on the biggest energy users in your place-- typically water heating, refrigeration and then things like lighting, small appliances, etc. To avoid ghost loads (from things like instant-on TV's, VCR's that have a cute clock on them), put your appliances on power strips. flip the switch and they are really off. Easier than plugging and unplugging everything. Insulate your water heater with an insulating blanket, whether it is gas or electric. Be careful to not hinder any air flow for gas water heaters. Insulate your pipes with the foam tubes, not window plastic. You can get them for about 6 ft/$1. Get as thick as possible. Concentrate on the hot pipes and the first 3-5 feet of the cold (coming from the water heater). Insulation in your attic is a good idea, but is a bigger expense. Put at least R-38 in your attic. Cellulose is good for most of the country, fiberglass more common. If you are doing it yourself, fiberglass is easier to install. Read magazines like Home Power, Home Energy, Solar Today. And turn your appliances off when you are not using them. One last thought-- hang up your laundry. If all Americans hung their laundry instead of using dryers, we could turn off all of the nuclear power plants in the US.