Energy Saving Days
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Our local gas and electric provider notifies us the day before an Energy Savings Day. The idea is to encourage people to use less energy between 1 and 7 on those days - usually the hottest days of the summer.
My husband and I make a game of thinking of things we can do to reduce our energy consumption on those days….and still be reasonably comfortable. We are usually at home in the afternoons during the summer - and usually entrenched in indoor activities.
- We close draperies or blinds anywhere the sun might be shining in (the west facing windows) primarily. This is something that has become a habit even on the days that are not Energy Savings Days.
- I switch to battery power for my laptop and tablet….usually the battery power lasts for as long as I want to use the devices during the energy savings hours.
- It is easy to not run the dishwasher or washing machine/dryer on those afternoons.
- We eat our big meal of the day (the one that might need the stove) at noon rather than the early evening or plan to cook everything on the grill for the evening meal. Eating cool salads or raw foods helps us feel cooler too.
- We turn up the thermostat by 5 degrees and move down in the house (sometimes to the basement) as the house heats up enough on the second story to be uncomfortable.
We wear lightweight clothing (for me that is usually a skirt and short sleeved top and go barefoot (Somehow I always feel cooler when I am not wearing shoes!).- I always have something cool to drink nearby. My favorite this simmer icy cold lemon water (no sugar…just the hint of lemon).
The feedback we get the day after the Energy Savings Day has been positive…we are generally in the top 10% of savers. There is a double benefit in that we actually use less energy and we get a rebate from the electric provider. Energy Savings Days are becoming just an integral part of life in the summertime.
