CO2 Smackdown, Step 12: Build on Your Gains
Published:
January 6, 2011
Comments 
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:1If you’ve gone through the previous smackdown steps, or even just some of them, you’ve made significant improvements in your home and commute, including sealing up your house to stave off the winter cold, improving your furnace’s efficiency,reducing waste and more. Congratulate yourself on the work completed and the knowledge that you’ve slashed up to 10 tons of global warming emissions annually with a yearly savings of over $3,500.
Now keep at it.
Take advantage of the new opportunities for improvement, such as the electric-powered and alternative fuel vehicles coming on line now, smart meters (when available from your utility), LED bulbs, and other innovations.
Be sure to claim what you can in your taxes for the improvements you’ve made. For Federal tax incentives see the Tax Incentives Assistance Project for information about the limits on energy efficient home improvements. For a listing of state incentives, visit the Alliance to Save Energy.
Maintain your home and appliances:
- Clean and replace your furnace filter monthly when in heavy use
- Clean your AC filter monthly
- Clean refrigerator coils about every three months
- Keep your electronics on efficient settings and shut them down when not in use
- Run the dishwasher only when full
- Keep your showers short (make five minutes the norm, if possible)
- Turn off the lights
- Wash clothes in cold water
- Line dry your clothing
Finally, now that you’ve become an expert at green home improvements, start a green committee at your workplace with help from our upcoming step-by-step series on greening the office in our soon-to-be launched Smarter Business site.
Learn More:
CO2 Smackdown, Step 1: Home Energy Audit
CO2 Smackdown, Step 2: Sealing and Insulating
CO2 Smackdown, Step 3: Heating
CO2 Smackdown, Step 4: Commuting
CO2 Smackdown, Step 5: Low-Cost Cooling
CO2 Smackdown, Step 6: Trimming Out Beef and Pork
CO2 Smackdown, Step 7: Treat Water Right
CO2 Smackdown, Step 8: Skip One Flight
CO2 Smackdown, Step 9: Reduce Waste
CO2 Smackdown, Step 10: Improve Appliances
CO2 Smackdown, Step 11: Defang Energy Vampires
Comments
Smart meters are not a good choice for conserving energy. Their main purpose is to provide a convenience for the electric and gas companies which use them for easy retrieval of meter data. The ultimate cost of such devices is paid by people who suffer from adverse health effects caused by magnified electromagnetic fields set up in their homes when smart meters are tied to the home's electrical grid. If you follow reports coming from consumers in California, a significant number of people are requesting removal of such devices because the devices have caused intense adverse reactions such as hypersensitivity to home electrical appliances as well as heart arrhythmias, chest pain and other symptoms immediately alleviated when smart meters are removed.
Please do more research before recommending these hazardous devices.
Thank you.
Miriam Weber, NMD, L.Ac
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Chemical Index
- 1,4-Dioxane
- Arsenic
- Asbestos
- Atrazine
- Bisphenol A (BPA)
- Carbaryl
- Chlorpyrifos
- Diesel
- Dioxins
- Endosulfan
- Fluoride
- Formaldehyde
- Hexavalent Chromium
- Lead
- Lindane
- Mercury
- Methylene chloride (dichloromethane)
- n-hexane
- Nanomaterials
- Ozone
- Parabens
- Perchlorate
- Perchloroethylene (Tetrachloroethylene, PERC, PCE)
- Phthalates
- Propoxur (Flea and Tick Pesticide)
- Pyrethrins
- Pyrethroids
- Styrene
- Sulfur Dioxide
- TDCP/TCEP (Chlorinated Flame Retardants)
- Tetrachlorvinphos (Flea and Tick Pesticide)
- Trichloroethylene (TCE)
- Triclosan and Triclocarban (Antibacterials)
