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The fireworks are over, the heat is on, and President Obama has announced a $2 billion federal investment in major solar projects in Arizona and Colorado.  But what can you as an individual do to become more energy independent?  After all, if we’re going to get serious about our energy and climate security, we’ll have to tackle the problem at every level, beginning with what we have the most immediate control over-our homes.

Getting control of home energy usage involves quite a bit more than switching out light bulbs and buying a more efficient refrigerator.  We need to look at our homes and lifestyles holistically, searching and finding every possible opportunity to use less and generate more electricity.  Since the 12-step method is effective for overcoming alcohol and drug abuse, let’s give it a try here:

1. Admit that you have a problem.  Understand that, although you are part of the problem, you can be part of the solution.  Instead of saying, “I’m not going to be the one sucker to change my ways while everyone else lives it up,” try, “I’m going to become a role model to show others how to become more energy independent.”
2. Adjust your comfort zone.  When I was a teenager, I thought 70 degrees was too cold and 75 too hot.  My dad called me a princess, and he didn’t mean it in a complimentary way.  Since then, I’ve redefined my comfort zone-the thermostat in my home is set for 63 in the winter and I don’t use air conditioning (I live in Berkeley so that’s easy).  An elderly neighbor of mine puts me to shame, keeping her heat at 55.  If I can do it and she can do it, so can you.  As President Carter advised, put on a sweater (or a parka). In the summer, better to lounge around in a bikini than to turn your home into a walk-in refrigerator.  If you feel a little warm, think about how much hotter it’s going to get if you and everyone else keep blasting their air conditioners.
3. Know the enemy. Use a Power Cost Monitor or common sense to identify your home’s energy hogs and vampires.  Energy hogs are air conditioners, cordless phones and appliances that run all or almost all of the time or appliances like clothes dryers that run for short bursts but use insane amounts of electricity.  Vampires are electronic devices like cell phone chargers and DVD players that suck power even when you think they’re off.
4. Slay the beast.  Replace energy hogs with more efficient models or do away with them altogether-how many cordless phones do you really need?  How about that new digital photo frame you got for Christmas?  If you live in a hot, dry climate, take a look at evaporative cooling systems which are orders of magnitude more efficient than conventional air conditioners.
5. Maim the beast.  If you can’t do away with it, get control by unplugging vampire devices when not in use and by programming heating and cooling systems to turn off while you’re not home. Make sure your home is properly insulated so that you’re not heating or cooling the air outside.
6. Reprogram the beast.  Remember how you reset your comfort zone in Step 2?  Now it’s time to reprogram your thermostat to match your new and improved comfort zone.
7. Use elbow grease and pedal power.  There are so many things we’ve grown accustomed to letting electricity do for us that we could do for ourselves-sweeping instead of vacuuming, using a push lawn mower or a hand-crank blender, flashlight or phone charger, hanging our laundry to dry. Do enough and you may even be able to cancel your gym membership.
8. Install a solar water heater and cut your natural gas bill by two thirds.
9. Don’t use hot water unless you must.  Cold water laundry settings are just as effective, and studies show that washing your hands with soap and cold water kills just as many germs as hot water.  Keep your hot showers short, and be mindful about letting the hot water run while doing dishes.
10. Install a solar PV system on your roof.  As you know from perusing this site, Sungevity offers a zero-down home solar lease, so what are you waiting for?
11. Check out these additional home energy smack down tips.
12. Spread the gospel of home energy efficiency wherever you roam.

Congratulations, you are now a recovering Home Energy Hog and well on your way to becoming a lean, green Home Energy Miser.  How would like an energy-independent world to go with your energy-independent home?  Stay tuned throughout the month of July to learn more…

–Erica Etelson

Is there a dad in your life who likes to tinker around the house?  How do you think he would like $8500 toward his little home improvement projects?  Cities are beginning to dole out money coming at us through the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program and the Recovery Act.  Find out what how to get the dough in Berkeley and other California and Arizona cities.

Happy Father’s Day.

–Erica Etelson

As we approach the end of Save Money, Energy and Water Week, you may at this point be wandering around your house glaring at your appliances accusingly, wondering just how much juice each one is guzzling anyway.  There are a couple of ways to find out:   A free method is an on-line tool that tells you how many watts common household appliances use and approximately how much they cost to run.  For example, you may surprised to learn that your iron is costing you $28 a year–I know I was, since I don’t own an iron.

For total accuracy, you’ll need to buy a Power Cost Monitor which tells you exactly how much electricity any appliance in your home consumes.  But before you start clicking your way toward buying one of these devices, ask yourself whether you’ll actually use it to help yourself become an energy miser.  Bear in mind that there’s a lot of embedded energy and rare metals in portable electronic devices so, unless you really think it will help you conserve electricity, stick with the free on-line tool or consider going in on a Power Monitor with a few neighbors.  On the other hand, if you have a gadget-crazed family member who would make the most of a Power Monitor, go for it–it would make the perfect Father’s Day gift for the right kind of Baby Boomer dad.

One final tip–if you don’t like CFL bulbs and have been squirreling away incandescents in anticipation of the national phaseout in 2012, take a look at LED lighting.  It’s more expensive but has important advantages over CFLs, including zero mercury, a warm quality to the light, and incredible longevity.  A 9-watt (40-watt incandescent equivalent) LED bulb at Home Depot goes for $40, but it will last for 20 years and use 15% less energy than a CFL, so you’ll break even in the end.

We wind down the Home Energy Smackdown today on Bike to Work Day.  We hope that, over the course of the week, you’ve experimented with some lifestyle habits that require less gas, electricity and water.  Drop us a line and let us know how it’s going.

–Erica Etelson

As promised, today we kick off Save Money, Energy and Water Week here on the Sungevity blog.  And lo’ and behold, perfect timing…Last Thursday, the House passed the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010, a $6 billion rebate program that will help homeowners pay for energy efficiency retrofits that will save them $9.4 billion over the next decade.

President Obama will definitely sign the bill once the details are reconciled between the House and Senate.  In the meantime, many California utilities already offer generous rebates-get started with what’s available right now and you’ll be able to tame your energy and water bills this summer:

LADWP customers can receive free shade trees and rebates for energy-efficient refrigerators, air conditioners, pool pumps, windows and high-efficiency (HE) clothes washers.

Southern California Edison offers rebates for energy-efficient lighting, refrigerators, electric water heaters, pool pumps, air conditioners, whole-house fans, and evaporative cooling systems (aka “swamp coolers”).

If you’re in the Riverside Public Utilities district, check out their triple rebate on insulation and other rebates for refrigerators, dishwashers, air conditioners, ceiling fans, shade trees, irrigation, drought-tolerant plants, and HE clothes washers and toilets.

San Diego Gas & Electric ratepayers will find rebates on attic insulation, natural gas furnaces, refrigerators, pool pumps, air conditioners, whole house fans, and dishwashers and can get a free water conservation kit.

If you’re a PG&E customer, take advantage of rebates for clothes washers, dishwashers, water heaters, room air conditioners, cool roofs, attic and wall insulation, gas furnaces, duct sealing, whole-house fans, pool pumps and motors and fluorescent lighting.  PG&E has also just begun offering rebates for solar hot water heaters, but the details on how to access this program are not yet clear.

Alameda Municipal Power customers can get rebates for refrigerators and insulation

EBMUD customers can get a free water conservation self-audit kit as well as rebates for HE clothes washers and toilets, sustainable landscaping, mulch and irrigation.  EBMUD will also send you freelow-flow shower-heads, faucet aerators, toilet low-flush bags and garden hose nozzles.

San Francisco Water offers rebates for HE toilets and clothes washers and provides free HE toilets to low-income residents.

Also, be sure visit the home page for the city you live in to see what it has to offer, especially for low-income residents.  Some of the municipalities in California we know have programs include Sonoma County, Santa Monica, Berkeley, San Francisco, Alameda County Water District, Palm Desert, and Ukiah.

And lastly, heads up Do-It-Yourselfers, here’s a guide to how to caulk and weather strip your home all by yourself.  If that sounds too ambitious, even a DIY knucklehead can at least install a programmable thermostat (33% savings on heating and cooling), set your water heater to 120º, and switch to CFL bulbs (75% less energy than incandescent and bulb lasts 8 times longer) or LED lighting (90% less energy and bulb last 40 times longer).

Most of the energy efficiency improvements outlined today require at least a small initial investment that will pay itself back and then some over time.  For those of you who are ready to start smacking down your utility bills right now without investing a dime, tune in tomorrow for the Free Home Energy Smack Down.

–Erica Etelson

The Ecology Center and the City of Berkeley have teamed up to put on a workshop on How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint in 2010.  The workshop will be held on February 25 from 7-9 pm at the Unitarian-Universalist Church at 1924 Cedar St.  in Berkeley.  You’ll learn how to reduce your own footprint and local resources available to help your friends and neighbors get on board.  Can’t make it?  Don’t fret–check the Ecology Center calendar for future workshops.

For all you gear heads out there, there are some pretty cool ways to upgrade your home into a more energy efficient state.

The other day, I stumbled across the Wattbox. Currently undergoing field trials, the Wattbox is designed to control central and water heating. What makes the Wattbox unique is that it learns occupant’s habits. From Science Daily, “The Wattbox’s heating controller sets its own schedule by learning householders’ habits according to the times they use hot water and switch on electrical appliances. From this, it sets the thermostat to suit the householder’s lifestyle taking account of the outside temperature.” According to the Wattbox website, the overall energy savings from an installed Wattbox, was 15.7% in the winter and 34% during the summer months. That’s an incredible saving.

The next device I came across was called the DaySwitch. The DaySwitch focuses on reducing energy use by tailoring indoor lighting to natural light. The designer of the DaySwitch, Andrew Bierman said, “DaySwitch is an automatic device that will simply shut the lights off when there is plenty of daylight available.” The designers of the DaySwitch estimate that people who install their device could reduce lighting energy consumption by up to an impressive 30%. For some more great ideas, checkout this slide show from the 2009 Green Gadgets Design Competition.

Unfortunately, while these gadgets are very cool and exciting, they aren’t widely available.  However, there are some appliances out there that are ready to be installed in your home. Smarthome, a home electronics store, has entire department dedicated to home efficiency. These devices include, but aren’t limited to, outdoor lighting that runs on solar panels, a combination microwave and convection oven that purportedly requires half the cooking time of a normal oven and a lint removal system for your dryer that helps reduce the amount of energy consumed by the appliance.

Finally, there are several companies that are designing software that helps homeowners monitor their energy consumption. One company called Lucid Design is developing software that helps people understand their consumption, and therefore make more informed decisions on power usage. Lucid Design Group‘s pilot programs have shown that real time feedback can reduce consumption by between 10% and 56%.

I haven’t been able to test these devices myself, so if anyone out there has any experience, or other great gadgets, please, let me know.