Tips for Your Office
Lighting

• Turn off lights whenever you leave a room or don’t need them, even for just a few minutes.
• Keep light fixtures clean – a cleaner bulb is a brighter bulb.
• Try task lighting and reduce overhead lighting.

Heating & Cooling

• Keep doors and windows closed when the air conditioning is on.
• During the heating season, open blinds, drapes and curtains to let sun in. If cloudy, close them to keep the heat in especially at night.
• During the cooling season close blinds, drapes and curtains to block direct sun.

Computers & Office Equipment

• Turn off your monitor when you leave for the day, go to lunch or to a meeting.
• Make sure you enable your computer’s energy-saving features.
• Turn off all energy consuming office and research equipment when not in use, e.g., copiers, refrigerators, environmental rooms, fume hoods, etc.
• Keep all computer equipment off unless in use – especially at night and on weekends.
• Purchase only energy-efficient equipment.
• Enable power management features on laser printers and/or turn off laser printers when not actively printing.
• Make sure all equipment that can be turned off at the end of the day is turned off. Don’t forget the coffee maker!

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'Tips for Campus Maintenance Staff

Campus maintenance staff play an essential role in reducing campus energy use because they are generally responsible for upkeep of the most energy-intensive systems.

Lighting

• Turn off lights when not in use.
• Ensure exterior lights are turned off during the day.
• Ensure windows are closed when air conditioning units are set to run.
• Close blinds or curtains in classrooms and other areas in the summer when it gets too warm indoors.
• Fix stuck dampers.
• Install low-flow washers in all hot water faucets.
• Clean steam traps.
• Check for tom or missing insulation and fix it.
• Clean condenser coils on cooling equipment.
• Wash lenses and luminaires on a regular basis.

Tips for Food Services Staff

Lighting

• Turn off lights when not in use.

Water

• Don’t let hot water run unnecessarily.
• Report missing or damaged pipe insulation.
• Report leaky faucets.

Heating and Cooling

• Keep windows closed when air conditioning is on.

Refrigeration

• Report gaskets on doors that do not seal properly.
• Defrost refrigerators & freezers as needed.
• Minimize the number of times refrigerator and freezer doors are opened.

Cooking

• Minimize opening ovens when they are on.
• Boil only the amount of water necessary for the job.

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Tips to Bring Home

Saving energy at your home is just as important as saving energy at your workplace. Here are a few simple tips to get you started. Add these to the tips above and you’re on your way to saving hundreds of dollars a year on your energy bills! For more great tips, visit the websites on our LINKS page.

Lighting

• Replace your incandescent light bulbs with energy-saving compact fluorescent bulbs.
• Put outdoor lights on a timer or motor sensor.

Heating & Cooling

• Manually set the temperature to these recommended thermostat settings:

Sitting, reading, watching TV: 21ºC / 70ºF

Working around the house: 20ºC / 68ºF

Sleeping: 18ºC / 64ºF

Away from home: 16ºC / 61ºF

• Take short showers instead of baths. A five-minute shower uses about half as much water as a bath.
• Use a low-flow showerhead. It can save up to 15% of your home's hot water use.
• Use more blankets in bed at night to keep your body warm enough without warming your whole home.
• Keep all south-facing glass clean to maximize solar gain.

In the Living Room

• Put your home entertainment systems on a power bar and turn off the bar when you are not using them. (Components without memories, clocks and timers, of course.)
• Unplug infrequently used TVs, as all continue to draw power even when turned off.

In the Laundry Room

• Dry clothes outdoors.
• Use cold water to wash clothes.

In the Kitchen

• Fully defrost and clean the inside of your freezer at least once a year.
• Reheat food using a toaster oven or microwave oven instead of a standard oven.
• Keep the oven door closed when cooking.
• Use an electric kettle to boil water instead of using the stove top which is less efficient.
• Don’t overfill the refrigerator, as this blocks air circulation. Conversely, a full freezer will perform better than an empty one.
• Allow hot foods to cool before putting them in the refrigerator.

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