This Month's Featured Article

Home Technology That Cuts Your Utility Bill Down To Size

by MICHAEL KABEL

 It's a fact of life that utility prices are one of the biggest costs that families and homeowners face each month. Heating and cooling the home - especially older houses, which tend to leak and draft air - can seriously impair family budgets.

Whether during the warmer months or the cooler ones, increasing energy efficiency and practicing basic conservation tips can help save literally hundreds of dollars each year. Many of the improvements can be made for just a fraction of that amount, using simple goods and items available from most hardware stores and the larger retailers.

Compact Fluorescent Lights

Compact Fluorescent Lights, or CFL's, are a relatively new kind of warm-toned fluorescent light bulb that last up to 75% longer than conventional bulbs. Their light casts a much brighter glow than the blue-tinted fluorescents of times past, resembling the more yellowish glow of conventional lights. Integrated CFL's are compatible with conventional light sockets; non-integrated CFL lights are not.

CFL's necessitate an investment, costing many more times the price of conventional light bulbs. That cost is recouped, however: studies show CFL's save an average savings of thirty dollars over the course of their lifespan. They also save more than 200 times their weight in greenhouse gas emissions.

In order to get maximum efficiency, CFL's are best used in light sockets that are normally kept on during the day or night. Frequently turning them on and off can reduce their longevity.

Finally, CFL's contain mercury vapor, so broken bulbs should be thoroughly cleaned and disposed of without the use of a vacuum cleaner. The Environmental Protection Agency recommends opening windows to help any lingering mercury vapors dissipate.

Energy Star products

Modern electronics, appliances, and even some practices and services qualify for the Energy Star seal of approval if they meet certain conditions mandated by the EPA and the Department of Energy. The Energy Star program was legislated by Congress in 1992 as part of a range of programs meant to reduce greenhouse gasses.

Energy Star measures products such as appliances, computers, and office machinery for their energy efficiency and energy-saving features. EPA estimates shows Energy Star products saved over $12 billion in energy costs in 2005 alone.

As just two examples, Energy Star-rated windows include dual-pane construction that work to trap heat inside the home in winter while repelling outside heat during the summer. Energy Star air conditioners use ten percent less energy than conventional units and contain additional efficiency features such as directional vents and digital timers.