It’s August which means another school year is about to start. 对于父母来说，这可能是一个好坏参半的问题. With the kids in school t在这里 are fewer expenses like childcare, 但是购买所有的物资, 新衣服, 鞋子, 运动器材, 等. 会成为每月预算的负担吗.
弥补差额的一种方法是 降低能源成本. 的 start of a new school year is the perfect opportunity to adjust how energy is used at home so t在这里’s less energy waste. Below are five easy ways you can adjust energy use during the school year to reduce consumption.
为开学季重新设置恒温器
在 夏天空调还得开着 孩子们在家的时候，不停地. It’s one of the reasons that energy use goes up during the summer months and can send the utility bill skyrocketing.
现在孩子们白天都在学校, it may be a good time to reprogram your thermostat and conserve energy. Since it’s still warm at the start of the year you can follow the summer thermostat setting guidelines: 把温度提高7-10度. If the temperature stays at that setting for 8+ hours you’ll reduce HVAC energy use by 10%.
重新编程智能灯泡
If you have smart bulbs t在这里’s a good chance they’re scheduled around the summer when days are longer and people are at home throughout the day. 一旦开学，你就可以:
- Adjust the lighting so that lights go on when it’s time to wake up (no need to flip the light switch in your kid’s room).
- Make sure the lights aren’t left on when you leave for school by putting them on a timer to go off when you head out the door.
- 设定好睡觉时熄灯的程序.
With smart bulbs everything can be automated to make getting ready for school and for bed a little easier and more energy efficient.
为设备创建一个高效的充电站
的 平均每个家庭有22台联网设备. When class is in session kids may need to use tablets and laptops more often to complete their school work on top of playing with them for fun.
的 best way to save energy while keeping the batteries full is to use solar chargers. You’ll need to find a space for the charging station that receives direct sunlight during part of the day to generate energy for free.
太阳能充电器的特点是:
- 面板效率.
- 设备输出功率.
- 能够同时为两个或更多设备充电.
- 用于连接设备的接口. Ideally you’ll want multiple ports of different kinds.
BONUS: If you take a road trip or go camping you can bring the solar charger with you to keep devices charged up on the go.
创造一个节能的(家庭)工作空间
而不是坐在电视机前发呆, your kids are going to be busy in front of a tablet or computer doing homework, 学习和完成项目. It’s the good kind of screen time, but it’s also energy intensive. Keep kids productive without making the electric meter work harder by setting up an energy efficient work space.
选择一个自然采光充足的空间
Choosing a space with natural lighting is about more than reducing the need for artificial lighting, 尽管这很有帮助. If you’re using solar chargers to power up devices, having a window in the work space is optimal. 的 efficiency of the solar charger will be about half as good as when placed outdoors, but it can work under direct sunlight through a window.
使用智能电源插板
Smart power strips are energy savers because they can virtually 消除能量吸血鬼 避免浪费电力. Another benefit of smart power strips is they can be set up to help with screen time rules. 例如, the smart power strip can be scheduled to cut the power at a certain time when all screens have to be off.
给家庭上一堂能源使用最佳实践课
Your kids may know to turn lights out when they leave a room and to never touch the thermostat, 但提醒总不会有坏处. Get the family together to go over energy use best practices so everyone is in on the effort. 你甚至可以设定节能目标. Come up with something fun you can do as a family if you hit your goals to further encourage kids to conserve energy.
Another option is to assign each of your kids an energy conservation task. Each month of the fall semester you can have them try a new task to reduce energy use. Focusing on one thing at a time makes the process less overwhelming and more attainable, 特别是如果你有年幼的孩子.
At 网投正规靠谱娱乐平台 we’re 在这里 for parents that want to reduce expenses during the school year. With our competitive plans t在这里’s no reason to overpay for electric and gas services. 我们知道你可以把省下来的钱用在更好的地方 找到你所在地区的星火能源计划.
