Energy Conservation - The Need To Save Energy

European countries have been ahead of North American countries in energy conservation because of the high costs associated with energy in their countries. If we adopt some of their practices we will be ahead of what will eventually make its way to our doorsteps. One method of controlling energy demand during peak hours in the day is to use smart meters to measure electrical use and charge at different rates during the course of an entire day. Peak hours equal higher costs, off peak hours equal lower costs, fairly straightforward. We may not think too much about that today but we will need to in the near future.
The province of Ontario, Canada is in the process of installing these smart meters and will adopt the variable rates once installation of all meters is complete. As part of the stimulus package the US allocated $4.5 billion to developing technologies for the "Smart Grid." "Several million networked meters have already been distributed in the United States."
Put quite simply less strain means less maintenance which translates to lower upkeep costs which in turn saves the end consumer money. It also limits the need to build more generating capacity and the need to bring on less efficient capacity during peak hours, this also saves the consumer money and reduces harmful emissions. The premise is to charge more when it costs more so the consumer is forced to be more efficient, more conscious about how they use their energy. We can stay ahead of this trend by making small changes now which will benefit us immediately as well as in the future.

How can we do this? We adopt some proven European practices and with a little effort become more energy efficient help the environment and save ourselves some money as a bonus. One of the easiest ways to get started is to take advantage of programmable appliances and make use of them during off peak hours. Peak hours vary slightly in different states and locales but you can be certain that highest demand always falls in around 7:00 A.M to 10:00 A.M and the 3:00 P.M. to around the 8:00 P.M. range, this will vary with the seasons depending on lighting and heating/cooling demands. This makes the objective to use your highest energy consumers outside of these peak demand hours. This may not seem feasible, especially in the evening when we get home from work and start cooking, turn down the A.C. in the summer or turn up the heat in the winter months but it can be accomplished.

This is where we take advantage of programming our appliances and heating and cooling systems to work for us while we are at work or sleeping or doing something else. This is a real benefit now because we can save time, energy and money. For heating and cooling we simply install a programmable thermostat and program it so that the peak hours are avoided. Cool your house at night when off peak hours are in abundance and you do not have to fight the sun. Draw the shades in the day and let the temperature come up a little. For heating turn it down a little at night and use an extra blanket and open the shades in the day to let the sun help heat up the house.

Simple so far, let's take the next step now. Use programmable appliances to take advantage of off peak hours. Use a programmable crock pot to come on after you leave for work so dinner is cooked when you get home. The crock pot is also efficient and has minimal energy requirements when compared to an oven or stove top so even when used during peak hours it is significantly better than using the alternative. The crock pot is also useful to use overnight during off peak hours, simply remove insert and place it in the fridge, re-heat when you get home. This will also reduce the heat emitted into the house which means less air conditioning use. Take advantage of other efficient alternatives like toaster ovens and microwaves to help as well. The possibilities just keep growing and once we get into this frame of mind and start enjoying the savings and the conveniences it just gets easier.
If we are all willing to make small changes that do not negatively impact our lifestyle and burden us with significant time and money requirements then we can do our part and reduce our resource use one step at a time to our benefit, as well as to the benefit of our future generations, children, grand children and great grand children.

Remember it does not have to be big to matter, every little bit helps. The sooner we start the more we can do, take the easy steps first and work your way towards the bigger steps. You will be surprised at how much energy you can save when you add all of your steps together. This starts like any great venture, one step at a time. Come on, stop thinking about it and take that first step, it's easy.