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6 Ways to Save energy in your home office

By
Real Estate Agent with Premier Realty Co.,LLC

With summer in full swing, and the sound of air conditioners running outside the window, our thoughts often turn to high electric bills. If you are one of the 4.2 million people who work from home, you owe it to yourself to consider using ENERGY STAR office equipment.

You've probably seen the Energy Star label, but do you know what it is? According to their website:

"In 1992 the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) introduced ENERGY STAR as a voluntary labeling program designed to identify and promote energy-efficient products to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Computers and monitors were the first labeled products. Through 1995, EPA expanded the label to additional office equipment products and residential heating and cooling equipment. In 1996, EPA partnered with the US Department of Energy for particular product categories. The ENERGY STAR label is now on major appliances, office equipment, lighting, home electronics, and more. EPA has also extended the label to cover new homes and commercial and industrial buildings."

ENERGY STAR office equipment is widely available and can save you as much as 90% in energy costs. Overall, ENERGY STAR office products use about half the electricity of standard equipment. In addition to the direct energy savings, it also can reduce air-conditioning loads, noise from fans and transformers, and electromagnetic field emissions from monitors.

 

6 Ways to Save energy in your home office

  • Select energy efficient office equipment and turn them off when they are not in use.
  • ENERGY STAR computers use about 70% less electricity than computers without the designation. When left inactive, an ENERGY STAR computer enters low-power mode and will use 15 watts or less.
  • To maximize your savings with a laptop, use a power strip for the AC adapter. You may not realize it but the transformer in the AC adapter draws power continuously, even when the laptop is not plugged into the adapter. Using a power strip will allow you to shut off the transformer when it's not in use.
  • Years ago, it was common knowledge that if didn't turn off your computer, it would last longer. Well guess what? Times change and computers have come a long way in the last decade. Turn it off at the end of the day.
  • You only save energy with an ENERGY STAR computer and monitor when the power management features are turned on so make sure you activate them.
  • Lastly here's a long-term energy savings tip: Make your next computer a laptop. They use much less energy than desktop computers.

Comments (4)

Christopher Pike, 803.727.7800
Keller Williams® Realty - Columbia, SC
Great tips Jim!!
Jul 08, 2007 03:24 PM
Leo Namiot - LeoLends.com
Canopy Mortgage - Leo Namiot - Saint Augustine, FL
More than just great rates
Very good tips Jim, we can all use a break on bills with gas still over $3.00 a gallon
Jul 08, 2007 03:28 PM
William Johnson
Retired - La Jolla, CA
Retired
Excellent Post Jim. I book marked to site to spend some time there and discover the best resources. Very Good! I rated this a 5. Please rate other posts  as go about commenting, we all need to get in the habit of doing that and way more often.
Jul 08, 2007 03:28 PM
William Johnson
Retired - La Jolla, CA
Retired
Excellent Post Jim. I book marked to site to spend some time there and discover the best resources. Very Good! I rated this a 5. Please rate other posts  as go about commenting, we all need to get in the habit of doing that and way more often.
Jul 08, 2007 03:28 PM