Get Rid of Spare Fridge Can Save AND Earn You Money

I cannot speak to this personally, because I've never owned a second refrigerator ... but if you do, getting rid of your spare is a great way to save about $120 annually.

Perhaps that fact hasn't motivated you yet, eh? Maybe your spare fridge is like the old car my neighbor was reluctant to sell, even though he never used it. After all, it held such fine memories! Or maybe the extra refrigerated space provides a sense of security. What in the world will you do should family and friends visit, or you host a party with hundreds of beer drinkers who love your guacamole?! Adding 10% to your power bill is an expensive way to keep drinks cold, but ...

I'll try another persuasive tactic. Did you know most power utilities in the U.S. offer a financial incentive for hauling if off for you, usually somewhere between $35 and $65. If you're buying a new refrigerator, some utilities will pay an additional rebate if you replace it with a new Energy Star model. Here in the South, Georgia Power will give customers $35 to recycle refrigerators ... but only in pilot ZIP Codes. All the ZIP Codes I checked in the Atlanta area qualify. There are other conditions, too. It must be in working order, empty and a full size 10 cu. ft. by 30 cu. ft. model. Call 866-466-9250 for pick up. Also, call to see if you qualify or click here and enter your ZIP code. (Let ZiptoGreen coach you, and we'll figure this out for you.)

If you just can't live without the extra fridge, DO NOT put it in your garage. During the summer, the refrigerator will have to work extra hard to keep food cold. That will cost you even more money.

Toasty Water Even at 130°

My thrifty Dutch husband already had turned down our water tank's thermostat, so I expected it to be set at 130°. The tank is apparently designed for people who are mechanically challenged. It features only A, B, C settings, with C being the hottest. The thermostat was set to B. I set it to A, and crossed my fingers that I wouldn't have to start taking cold showers.

The first shower I took was about 30 minutes after Henk took a shower. It was very toasty! I love a hot shower!! I have since found whether it is hot or just very warm depends on whether someone used the hot water recently. Even if I'm the first, though, turning on the hot water only makes it warm enough. Since we have a low flow-shower head, I've yet to run out of hot water.

Fridge Colder Than Necessary

My nifty $3.25 refrigerator thermometer came in the mail. I followed ZiptoGreen's directions and stuck it into a glass of water, then put it in the center of my refrigerator. I took this picture after leaving it overnight. What do you know? The fridge was about 4° too cold. I'll admit to being a little surprised. I adjusted the temperature and tested it again after eight hours to make sure it was at 38°. As they say, every little bit helps. 

Great Engagement!

I spent the morning seeing who has "engaged" with our first Sustainability Coaching subscriptions. I'm encouraged! It's been less than three days since the first subscribers were emailed and we have a 46.42% open rate. According to the experts, that's pretty good. Fantastic!

Who Would Have Thought ... An Interesting Utility Bill?

Getting power data from our online Ga Power account was easy. I just downloaded the info, then inserted it into ZiptoGreen's "My Utility Bills" form.

It hasn't been so easy with the gas. But that's probably my fault. Someone (most likely me) already created an account, probably after the summer of 2006 when I began paying attention to energy use. I have no earthly idea what the user name or email is, and I need one or the other to access the account. I'll work on that later. It may be easier to dig up a year's worth of hard copies.

The hard copy Henk gave me is from November. A comparative graph shows a very sharp increase last year during January, February and March, with the highest usage in March. That's strange given that my husband was in the Netherlands for a month during that time. Either they got it wrong ... or I kept the thermostat too high while Henk was away. The bill wasn't particularly high in December, though. That's also strange given the incessant cooking, showers and elevated thermostat that come with Christmas company.

Anyway, the photo here shows what I've input into the form thus far.

Reading the Power Meter

Finding the cable that allowed me to download the image of my power meter took much longer than taking the photo. I was surprised to see that Georgia Power had already switched out my old meter for a Smart Meter. And I was thrilled I didn't have to read dials!
But apparently not everyone is happy with the new Smart Meters. A number of complaints have been leveled against Georgia Power about utility bills that increased dramatically after installation. One post, however, insists that increases simply reflect a malfunction picked up by the new meter ... in the home's HVAC or some other energy-draining problem. Our utility bill seems in line with consumption. Actually, bills since installation are lower than they were a year ago, and more in keeping with where we keep our thermostat. This past summer we challenged a utility bill after finding they were "estimating" our usage ... meaning they weren't actually reading it every month.

Georgia Power is making a north to south sweep of the state. By August 2012, all of Georgia will have new meters. Here's a map that shows installation progress and when you can expect to receive your Smart Meter if you live here.

Busy? A Little Distracted? I'm Right There with You

Since the summer of 2006, I've been in a mad dash to help stop global warming. (Ooops. Make that "climate change." Wouldn't want you to think I'm a nut case.) When ZiptoGreen launched in Oct. 2009, I thought I could finally take a breather. No such luck. Since then I've done everything except stand on my head to get folks to engage in energy-saving solutions. I would have done that, too, if anyone had suggested it might work. That's why I can't tell you exactly how much energy and money my household has saved. I've been very, very busy. Really.

When someone asks about my personal savings, I'll go on and on about the insulation we blew into the attic, the Energy Star appliances we purchased, the CLFs scattered throughout the house and our great low-flow shower head. I'll say the typical household spends 25% of energy costs on heating water—needlessly. I'll tell anyone who cares to listen about the disadvantages of a side-by-side refrigerator with an ice maker and water filter in the door, even if it is an Energy Star model. I'll talk about problems I've encountered with trying to use energy efficient lighting. What I can't say is exactly how much money and energy has been saved. I can't do that because I don't know exactly. The truth is, I trust the wealth of data already out there. In large part, it's the same data from the U.S. Dept. of Energy that ZiptoGreen is based on. Generally speaking, I know I've save a lot.

However, the other part of the truth is I've been so busy and distracted some energy-saving actions have been left undone. There's plenty more I can do to reduce my energy use. Unfortunately, most people are also very busy. Especially anyone who fancies him/herself a leader. Even environmental leaders! That doesn't bode well for global warming.

In late 2010, I was struck by a solution—one that might encourage at least a few people to take the time to reduce their energy consumption. What if I walked my talk, consistently?! Every single month. What if I were a better example? What if I kept track of how much money and energy I'm saving? And what if—since I am first and foremost a writer, and a journalist second—I wrote about walking my talk. You think that might work? Sounds like a plan to me.