Maybe you’re a small business owner, or an energy-conscious employee. Either way, it is never a bad idea to make sure that your office is as efficient as possible. Not only would you save money on an electric bill, but you can rest easy knowing that you’re helping the environment.
Go To Sleep
Energy saving modes on computers, printers, and fax machines all save around seventy percent of the power that they would be using if you just left them on. Make sure energy saving mode is enabled on all your devices. Taking it a step further, before you leave for lunch put your computer in sleep mode. Doing this will ensure that you’re using minimal power. If you can, switch to laptops – they use about eighty percent less energy than desktop computers. And when you leave your office, power your computer all the way down for the day.
Update Your Fridge
If your office has a fridge that hasn’t been updated recently, it’s probably sapping power. An Energy Star fridge could be available to you at a discounted price depending on the year of your fridge. Getting a new refrigerator could save you more than a hundred dollars per year, so the investment you make will pay itself off sooner than you might think.
Get a Bright Idea
Energy saving light bulbs last anywhere from ten to twenty-five times longer than outdated light bulbs. Depending on your old model of bulb, you can save around fifty dollars a year just by making a simple switch to LED light bulbs. If you can’t make the switch with all the lights in your office, you can do your part by replacing any personal lighting you might have in your work area or at your desk.
Switch To Power Strips
When electronic devices are plugged into power outlets, even if the devices are off, they can still sap power. When cords are plugged into a power strip, it’s easier for the strip to be powered off than having to go and unplug each machine individually.
Keep the Door Closed
It may seem like a simple step, but when your air is treated to be either warmer or cooler than the outside temperature, leaving doors open can sap the treated air. If you have freight doors, leaving them open can lose a large amount of the conditioned air. Sealing cracks in doors and making sure they’re airtight also helps keep the air in or out. Keeping your thermostat at 72 degrees in the winter or less and 76 degrees more in the summer also helps reduce your energy bill.
Don’t Print
Reading your documents on the computer can help cut back on energy output that you would have expended by printing. And, surprise surprise, it also saves paper, which is you doing your part to help the environment even further.
Educate Your Employees
The best way to get everyone to be as green and responsible with energy as possible is to let them know how they’re using it. F.A.S.T. Rescue has a course on energy efficiency in the workplace designed to teach how to set an energy efficient strategy into place. The more you know, the more conscious you can be of your carbon footprint and the steps you can take to reduce it.