Automatically Green

Everyday, we hear countless ways to "go green." From changing all the light bulbs in your house to turning off the lights whenever they are not in use, to remembering to raise the thermostat temperature in the summer or lower it in the winter while remembering also to replace the filter every two months. The problem is, no one has the time, the energy or the memory to do all these things.

This Instructable will show you how to be green without so much work on the going part. You will be presented with several easy ways to conserve energy by reducing the energy used by lighting and controlling the climate of your home, and in the process, save money, all automatically. When it comes to going green, less work is sometimes better. Automation is the key.

The steps in this Instructable contain comprehensive (and a bit expansive) background information and statistics which describe the usefulness of each method to be Automatically Green. This information is also meant to illustrate the economical and environmental advantages of these methods. If this information does not interest you, skip to the last step for the instructions without so much information.

Step 1 Change The Lights

The Problem:

About 12% of the annual energy budget for the average American home is used for lighting. This equates to about 1200 kWh/year per home or about $128, just to run the lights. What is more appalling, however, is that 90% of this energy is emitted as heat instead of light. Not only does this cost the average U.S. home about $115 each year, but it also contributes heat to the house in the summer, raising air conditioning costs.

The Solution:

We have all heard it a million times, but replacing incandescent light bulbs with compact florescent ones is an essential step in improving your home's efficiency. No energy saving habits or switching gadgets can replace the vast improvement in efficiency between incandescent and compact florescent bulbs. Compact florescent light bulbs use 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs to produce the same amount of light. Lastly, while compact florescent light bulbs are significantly more expensive than incandescent bulbs, the energy they save more than compensates for this difference. An Energy Star compact florescent light bulb saves about $30 over its lifetime and it also helps to reduce electricity use and greenhouse gas emission. If you want to know how much money you can save by replacing your conventional light bulbs with compact florescent, take a look at this calculator developed by the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy: Savings Calculator. Yet another way you can save by switching to compact florescent light bulbs is through special rebates which may be available in your area; visit this website to find special deals where you live: Rebates

Comments

[valhallas_end]

There is an annoying problem with motion-sensor lights though - if you enter a room and then sit motionless somewhere (i.e. on a computer, reading, writing, etc.) the lights go off and you have to wave your arms or move to bring them back up. This would also kill CFL's far more rapidly. Are there any sensors that work as a motion sense toggle (the first time you pass directly in front of it, the lights pop on, and they stay on until you pass by leaving the room)?

[greenbeanmusicmachine]

you could use the clapper. personally I say train yourself to turn off the lights when you leave the room or will be gone any length of time. just keep telling yourself to do it and after maybe 10 times it will be automatic

[valhallas_end]

Heh I tried that once a few years back. It was great, until I found one annoying flaw - the clapper also responds to gunshot sounds from Half-Life 2 or similar games, and the lights flashing becomes nauseating after a while. Yes, I could have turned the volume down (headphone jack was sadly busted then though), but it was easier to train myself to always flip the switch on the way out.

[killerjackalope]

Probably made the game way more immersion and cool at first, when it's flashing from gunfire... But then again I have a strobe light, not sure why though...

[valhallas_end]

If you want a great effect, play a racing game with a strobe shooting across the screen, especially for multiplayer on one screen (seizure warning in effect of course!). If you can place it right, the time jumps make the games far more hilarious.

[killerjackalope]

Works really well with a projector, granted the seizure is just inevitable at that size...

[Toglefritz]

You know, I actually did spell that right. The lights really do blossom.

[lemonie]

If you are going to tell us things that "we've all heard a million times" would you please correct the spelling of fluorescent?

L

[imshanedulong]

No one cares about spelling. (to a certain extent)

[lemonie]

A lot of people do care about spelling (to a certain extent). Fluorescent is one that a lot of people seem incapable of getting right (including retailers of cheap fluorescent lights...) Incorrect spelling can spoil an otherwise well-written piece of work. L

[imshanedulong]

If not many people notice it, and people easily kow what it is, it isn't that bad. Although, with the cheap bulbs, your right.

[lemonie]

No, it isn't that bad. The problem is that when people don't notice, it propagates until you have people incorrectly labeling thousands+ of products incorrectly. Then at some point a dictionary will include it because it's commonly used. Then you find your language has become more corrupted because a few people didn't care about using it correctly years before.

L