Conservation tips for small businesses

There are some general energy saving tips that may be useful to all businesses. We list them here for your consideration. For customized advice on reducing your power consumption e-mail us and we'll set up an appointment.

Change your routine
You can save significant amounts of energy just by changing habits. Following is a list of the kinds of changes you could make in your everyday practices and reduce your energy costs.

  • Turn off lights, computers, and other office equipment when they are not in use. Develop a procedure to ensure that they get turned off at night and on weekends.
  • Turn off outside safety and security lighting at the start of each day. 
  • Lower your heater thermostat to the lowest comfortable setting when your business is occupied. Set it back further when no one is there. 
  • In warmer months, raise your air conditioner thermostat to the highest comfortable setting. 
  • Always allow at least five degrees Farenheit difference between heating and cooling set points to keep it from cycling from heating to cooling and back. In other words, if the heat is set to 68 degrees the cooling should be set no cooler than 73 degrees. 
  • Keep windows and doors closed to prevent heat loss during winter or loss of cool air in summer. Consider using open doors and windows to provide ventilation instead of the air conditioning in the summer. 
  • Set back or turn off heating or air conditioning a little while before the end of your operating hours. In the winter you'll need to keep some heat on to keep the pipes from freezing. 
  • Make use of solar heat by opening drapes or blinds during colder months. Close them at night to retain heat.

Maintain your equipment

  • Check to be sure all automatic controls are set and operating correctly.
  • Clean all filters in your heating and cooling system each month. 
  • Caulk or weatherstrip any drafty doors or windows. 
  • Remove unneeded light bulbs or use lower wattage bulbs. 
  • Replace incandescent light bulbs with screw-in energy efficient compact fluorescent bulbs as appropriate. 
  • Lower your water heater thermostat.120 degrees F is adequate for handwashing. 
  • Adjust outdoor lighting timer controls at clock changes for daylight savings time. Consider installing photocells which sense daylight and turn off automatically when it is no longer dark.

Install more efficient equipment

  • Install set-back thermostats to control your heating and cooling. You can program them to match your "open" hours.
  • Install occupancy sensors in areas not in constant use like bathrooms, meeting rooms, storage and break spaces. They will turn out lights between uses. 
  • Install light emitting diode (L.E.D.) exit signs in place of incandescent signs. They last up to 15 times longer and use less energy. 
  • When changing interior lighting use energy efficient fluorescent T-8 lamps with electronic ballasts. 
  • If you lease equipment, insist on energy efficient models to lower your operating costs.