Your children are learning great things about reading, writing and arithmetic in school. At home, you can teach them a thing or two about conserving energy. According to LCEC certified energy experts, energy conservation is even more important during the warmer months or when your children are home during the day and using electricity to power the television, video games and air conditioner. LCEC has the following tips to help teach kids how their conservation can help keep your bill low:
Teach children to turn off the television and video games when they are finished with them. If your little ones leave the room while they are on, they are spending money to entertain the furniture- and that leaves less money for new video games!
Ask your kids to decide what snack they want before opening the refrigerator. That way, the door doesn’t remain open, letting all the cool air escape.
Teach your family to set the thermostat at 78 degrees—each degree cooler adds 8 percent to your cooling costs. Trouble with kids changing the settings? Purchase a programmable thermostat so they won’t need to adjust the temperature.
Remind children to turn the lights off when they leave a room. Even better, use natural lighting from the sunlight during the day so that electric lighting is not needed.
Don’t allow direct sunlight to heat the home. Utilize blinds or tinted windows that provide natural light while keeping out warm sunlight.
Ceiling fans only serve a purpose when you are in the room – to cool your skin. Be sure to turn them off if you aren’t in the room because they don’t reduce the temperature of the room.
Save hot water by taking short showers instead of baths.
For more energy saving information, visit www.lcec.net