Green Tips
There are a lot of little things we all can do to reduce living expenses and help the environment. Here are a few tips to get started – please feel free to email any additional tips you may have to share with the 215 West community.
- Turn off machines and power strips when you leave a room; when going on vacation, unplug the machines – even in standby mode, machines continue to draw energy if left plugged in
- Don’t block your heating vents with furniture or other items
- Wait until there’s a full load to run your dishwasher
- Conserve energy by turning off the lights in rooms you are not using
- Turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth and take shorter showers
- CFL’s (compact fluorescent light bulbs) are all the rage – get in on it and save 75% of the energy it takes to light incandescent bulbs
- Turn on the oven light to check on your food rather than opening the door and releasing hot air
- Dry one load of laundry after another, as the dryer is already hot and ready to go
- Cool your apartment by keeping your blinds, drapes or shades closed during Chicago’s summers
- On the flipside, open those blinds, drapes and shades in the winter and let the warm sunshine in
- Turn down your thermostat during times you aren’t home
- When you are in your home, lower your thermostat a few degrees in the winter and raise it slightly in the summer. 74 degrees in the summer feels like 60; 68 degrees in the winter feels like 80
- Use reusable shopping bags when grocery shopping
Visit www.ComEd.com for more tips and incentive programs.
