From the EPA press office:
This holiday season you can give a gift that is green in more ways than one. With Energy Star labeled products, you are helping someone save money on their energy bill and protect the environment by fighting climate change.
In fact, the typical homeowner can save more than 30 percent, or about $700 on annual energy bills with Energy Star labeled products. EPA has identified a few products to keep your eye out for as you start holiday shopping:
- Televisions. They are now up to 30 percent more energy efficient than standard models and use less energy when they are on, off or in standby.
- Computers. They use up to 50 percent less energy than conventional models, depending on use. And, when you plug in your new computer, make sure its power-management features are enabled.
- Rechargeable tools. Cordless hand vacuums, electric screwdrivers and universal battery chargers, on average, use 35 percent less energy than conventional models.
- Decorative light strings. Featuring LED technology, they use 75 percent less electricity than conventional incandescent light strings, are available in a variety lengths, colors, shapes and sizes, and are much more durable and shock-resistant than other light strings.
Check www.epa.gov and http://www.energystar.gov/ to find out how you can give a gift to Mother Earth this holiday season.
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On the Energy Collective we find this warning about the state of the Energy Star program…
“The U.S. government’s Energy Star program is in trouble. Despite all the media references it garners, the program is failing the American public and, without serious intervention, will collapse in on itself to become a black hole of irrelevance and wasted resources.”
http://theenergycollective.com/TheEnergyCollective/30383
Basically, the program is co-run by DOE and EPA and they don’t seem to be playing nice together.
Program seems to be in need a big fix.
This is a major tool for helping us minimize our energy consumption. Hope someone with influence leans heavily on the new Executive Branch to fix this ASAP.
And on a semi-related post from the same site…
“An unexpected drop in U.S. electricity consumption has utility companies worried that the trend isn’t a byproduct of the economic downturn, and could reflect a permanent shift in consumption that will require sweeping change in their industry.”
http://theenergycollective.com/TheEnergyCollective/30495
Perhaps we’ve turned a corner that badly needs turning. Those of us who live off the grid learned long ago how to achieve a comfortable lifestyle while minimizing our energy consumption.
Perhaps the same attitude of “doing the same with less” is starting to appear in the general public. A well-functioning Energy Star program could help….
A (perhaps too) common electronic device that is a profligate energy user is the video game player. Perhaps because the player remains at full power when a game is suspended (which seems to be the only way to preserve the current game values), it is left on, burning up to 300 watts 24/7, by players who do not realize the (hundreds of) dollars they are wasting, depending on which player they are using. The game machine manufacturers are just being made aware of this problem.
Maybe this Xmas it might be a Green thing to not give a new video game player, but give a new efficient display, printer or computer instead. Then next year the players might be more green.
Actually, the game machine manufacturers are just being made aware that others are aware of this problem!
I just read this article on CNN about a domestic smart meter:
http://money.cnn.com/2008/11/14/technology/woody_house.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2008111910
I was a bit stunned at the monthly bill of $367. Ours is running at about £45 ($67) a month. Is $367 a month normal in the US?
You live somewhere that “likes” the AC on for half the year? Or heat with electricity? Have a heated pool?
If you’re thinking in pounds then you’re most likely living in a moderate climate.
‘The production of a computer is more energy-intensive due to its high-tech nature; extensive processing is required to create its complex components. The combined high-energy intensity and short life span raises a computer’s lifetime energy impact to that of a refrigerator. But 96% of a refrigerator’s lifetime fossil fuel consumption occurs during its use phase. For a computer, the situation is reversed: 25% occurs during use, while 75% occurs during production. So while its most important for appliances like a fridge to reduce energy use over the use phase, for computers, the best green strategy is to reduce energy in production and increase its useful life.’
http://ecopcreview.com/LCA_and_ECPR?page=0%2C1
Energy Star is a joke.
Bob, I just wonder why I bothered to swap all my nive attractive halogen spots in the kitchen for nasty CFL’s when people actually HEAT their entire houses with electricity. No, I don’t have a heated swimming pool. I don’t even use the bath – showers use far less water and energy.
Yes, I live in a moderate climate. Personally I think it is a mistake expecting to build cities in parched, equalorial desert regions, but tell that to the owner of the Flamingo.
‘Normal’ seems to mean different things to different people when it comes to energy consumption.
Well, interesting C&P.
Stupid summary statement.
If one wants to buy a new refer, a new AC, a new dryer then Energy Star can give one an idea of which model is going to eat more power year after year.
Could/should the Energy Star program be expanded to include the relative amount of energy that went into the production of the product?
Perhaps. But do realize that to some extent that production energy consumption cost is reflected in the unit price.
I changed out my refrigerator over a year ago at Sears and I made the extra effort to make sure it was Star Energy Compliant. I was really shocked how little power it used. Most times it pulls only 10 watts. When the compressor is running it goes up to around 100 watts. Most of the time it runs at 10 watts.
I’m off the grid. When I set up my first system in the mid-90s I found the most efficient (lowest draw) refer that I could buy was a 9 cu ft Sanyo that was rated at a bit over 1kWh per day. And it was not self-defrosting nor did it keep ice cream frozen hard.
When I set up my second system ten years later I was able to find an 18 cu ft Kenmore (via Energy Star) that was rated at 1.2kWh per day. It’s self-defrosting and keeps frozen stuff nicely frozen.
I’ve measured its draw over extended periods of time and found that it rarely pulls an average of 1.2 kWh, only during periods of very hot weather. I’d say that the Energy Star rating was a bit on the conservative side, which is a good thing.
Refers have definitely improved and Energy Star is a pretty good way to find the best. Hopefully we will see that program improved over the next couple of years.
Actually, energy star does include some rather strict life cycle analysis, not just direct electric use.
And keep in mind that saving electricity from turbines is 2-3x better than energy in production if the energy in production is thermal (eg by natural gas heaters). You have to include exergy in life cycle analysis as well.