Power usage in

the home Field Research

Wha

t I s

aw

}  We bought new windows and use cfl

light bulbs. }  Turn off lights when not in the room and

do not leave computers on

}  We have no problem bundling up in the

winter to cut down on the heating bill. I

remember last summer we waited until

the last moment to turn on the air...it got

to the point where it was hotter in the

house than it was outside.

Wha

t I s

aw

}  Turn the lights off when leaving a room

}  Use natural lighting whenever possible

}  Unplug cell phone chargers and small

appliances when not in use, turn off computers,

etc. }  Use energy-efficient AC units and only turn them

on during certain times of the day (and only

when absolutely necessary)

}  Have our refrigerator/freezer set to low

Wha

t I s

aw

}  keep our thermostat at a high temp in

summer, when it was really hot this

summer, we set it at 78 during the day.

In winter we set it low around 67 at night

time for heating. }  changed out all lights to fluorescent

ones, turn off all lights in rooms when

not in use. }  Unplug as many items as we

can have unplugged.

Wha

t I s

aw

}  We try to leave the heat and air turned off as often as we can, line dry

laundry. }  Unplug and turn off as much as possible.

}  Each time a bulb goes out we replace it with florescent.

}  Try to conserve water since our water is on an electric pump.

}  House is well insulated.

}  We try to use as little energy as possible when we are not at home and

when we are sleeping at night. Programmable thermostat has helped

with that. }  Gene is obsessive about hanging out laundry on the line. Sometimes

stuff hangs out there for days before we bring it in. In the winter, he

hangs laundry in the basement and I think it ends up smelling musty, so

I don't do that. }  We do budget billing so the energy we do

use isn't so painful!

Wha

t I s

aw

}  We run a program on our thermostat to keep the temp at a

slightly more uncomfortable temperature while we're not at

home during the week (i.e. during the summer, it's set at 78

degrees while we're at work and 72 when we're home...in

the winter it's at 65 while we're at work and 72 when we're

home) }  Make sure we turn off lights when we're not in the room or

it's sunny outside, don't use heating or cooling on

temperate days, }  We don't leave ceiling fans on in rooms we're not in

}  My parents always put that awful plastic crap on the

windows in the winter. My dad also made these ghetto

heat directors out of shoe boxes so that the hot air

didn't go straight up the wall but into the main part

of the room. (Removed ceiling fan in main living room

to put in a lamp for aesthetic appeal.)

Wha

t I le

arne

d Common Themes: Fluorescent bulbs Unplugging devices when

not in use (vampire power) Thermostat conservation

Turning off things when not

it use.

What it means Verbal comments did not match up with actual usage.

- In most on sight visits many things were

left on in unoccupied rooms.

New CFL bulbs seem a very popular

energy conservation technique.

Water heaters or pumps were not usually

at the forefront of peoples minds.

As a general rule the younger

participants seemed concerned about

power usage for cost purposes and the

older participants seemed concerned for

environmental reasons.

Wha

t I c

an d

o.

}  Congress passed a law in 2007

calling for all incandescent light

bulbs to be phased out between

2012 and 2014. First out is the

100-watt bulb. ---Are there any other bills on the

table to ride the wave with?

}  Find out the age demographic

that we are aiming more towards

it may help with choosing an

environment or savings focus.

}  Explore Vampire Power not as

commonly talked about as

thermostat or lights. }  People always refer to their

thermostat. Incorporate other

usage measurements into the

thermostat as a ‘one-stop-shop’