HOME ENERGY DETECTIVES Overview: Determine how much energy your home uses each day by taking daily readings of your kilowatt meter. Discover how much power each appliance and technology in your home uses. Track your home energy consumption and learn ways to reduce. Questions: Part 1: Much energy does your home use? Part 2: How is energy distributed at home? What do you contribute to home energy use? Part 1: Daily Home Energy Consumption Below is an example of a five-dial electric meter. Notice that the pointers on the first, third and fifth dial move in the same direction as a hand of a clock. The second and fourth pointers move in the opposite direction. In the example above, the current meter reading is 83895. The meter was read the previous week at the same time and displayed 8770. Therefore the energy used over the course of the week for this location is 125 kwh. When Reading Your Electric Meter: Read the numbers from RIGHT to LEFT, and write them down in the same order. If the pointer is between two numbers, always read the lowest number. If the pointer is between 9 and 0, always read 9. If the pointer appears to be exactly on a number, read the next lowest number unless the pointer to its right has passed zero. Since the first dial has no dial to its right, the number must be read independent Each meter is numbered make note of your meter number.
Here are few examples. Fill in the blanks under each meter reading. Now record the numbers on your home s kilowatt meter. Observe meter readings over three consecutive days and record the numbers you find in the spaces provided below. With the information you gathered you can get a sense of how much energy your home averages daily. Subtract the number you recorded for day 1 from day 2 to determine: Day 1 ------------ ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- Day 2 ------------ ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- Day 3 ------------ ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- Day 4 ------------ ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- ------------- 1. How many kilowatts hours were used day 1 2. Determine the energy used on day 2 and day 3 3. Determine the average for the three days by adding your daily findings up and dividing by three
4. Multiply your answer for question 3 by 30 for a monthly energy use estimate The average home uses roughly 1000 kilowatt hours a month. Where does your home fall on this scale? If you ve taken steps to reduce energy consumption already you likely use less energy, but even well built homes with efficient heating systems can be energy drains. Read on to learn more. Part 2: Where Does the Energy Go in Your Home? Home energy use is often discussed in terms of the three main energy users in our home: heating, hot water heating, and lighting and electronics. The graph to the right breakdowns the energy use around the home of average family of four. The typical home will spend 1900 dollars a year for electricity in the home It is interesting to note that as modern homes are built with highly efficient heating systems and low energy use lighting, electronics is the fastest growing area of energy consumption in our home. *Statistics courtesy of Energy Star.gov Many common electronics also draw energy in the form of phantom power. Phantom power is drawn from equipment that requires energy to power LCD displays or flash memory when the equipment is not in direct use. You can stop phantom load draws by placing home stereo systems and computer stations on power strips (preferably with built in circuit breaker) that can be turned off at night stopping the flow of electricity. How to determine the cost of appliances. To determine how much energy is used by equipment in your home aside from heating and hot water heating you ll need to know how many kilowatts they use each day. Below is a helpful list of basic electricity definitions that will help you understand what a kilowatt is and how to calculate kilowatt hours. Ampere or Amp (A) Volt (V) Watt (W) Kilowatt (kw) Kilowatt Hours (kwh) The unit for the electric current; the flow of electrons. A unit of measure of the force, or 'push,' in an electric circuit. A unit of power (not energy). In electricity, watts equal amps of current multiplied by volts of electromotive force. Power is a rate of instantaneous consumption. Amps x Volts = Watts 1000 watts = 1 kilowatt (kw) A unit of energy (not power). Amps x volts x hours = Kilowatt Hours
The Chart below is based on a kilowatt hour cost of 9 cents. Appliances by Room Kitchen Approximate Average Wattage Tip: There are 720 hours in a 30 day month Monthly Hours of Use Monthly kwh Approximate Cost to Operate Broiler 1400 12 17 1.65 Coffee Maker 900 30 27 2.66 Dishwasher (with electric water heating) 1300 40 102 10.04 Frying Pan 1150 20 12-23 2.27 Range: small burner 1250 20 25 2.46 Range: large burner 2100 20 42 4.14 Oven 3200 1.5 5.47 Refrigerator 500 300 90 8.86 Toaster 1150 3.5 4.40 Toaster Oven 1250 24 30 2.95 Lighting 60 watt incandescent bulb 60 200 12. 1.13 Compact Fluorescent 60 watt equivalent Compact Fluorescent 75 watt equivalent Compact Fluorescent 100 watt equivalent 18 200 4.34 22 200.4 -.41 28 200 6.53 Bedroom and Bathroom
Electric Blanket 180 90 16 1.60 Hair Dryer 1000 10 10.98 Heating Pad 65 30 1-2.19 Bathroom Fan 150 30 5.44 Laundry Room Dryer 5000 28 140 13. 79 Washer (with electric water heater) 500 40 196 19.30 Iron 1000 10 10.98 Sewing Machine 75 14 1.10 Home Entertainment Computer, Monitor, Printer 200 60 32 3.15 Stereo 30 170 5.50 Television 80 440 35 3.47 Video Cassette Recorder 40 200 8.79 Heating and Cooling Air Conditioner (6,000 BTU) 40 720 29* 2.80 Air Conditioner (9,000 BTU) 750 400 300* 29.19 Dehumidifier 250 720 252 24.52 Electric Space Heater 1000 90 90 8.76 Water Heater (Family of 4) 4500 138 621 60.43 Water Heater (Family of 2) 4500 92 414 40.29 Outdoor Hedge Trimmer 125 8 1.10
Hot Tube 3000 12,700 30 381 37.08 Lawn Mower 1500 4 6.58 Holiday Lighting (1 string standard C-7) 100 360 1.14 Indoor - Other Ceiling Fan 60 330 20 1.93 Vacuum Cleaner 800 6 5.47 50 Gallon Fish Tank Pump, light, heater130 130 Always on 18 1.74 *Statistical information courtesy of Eugene Water and Electric Board How Much Energy Do You Use? Appliance Category Cost of Use kwh per Month Typical Cost per Month Bathing tub bath 12 deep Shower with old showerhead (5gpm) With water-saving head (2.5gpm) Clothes Washing Hot Wash/Warm Rinse Hot Wash/Cold Rinse Warm Wash/Warm Rinse Warm Wash/Cold Rinse Cold Wash/Cold Rinse.21 per bath.35 per shower.18 per shower.34 per load.28 per load.29 per load.15 per load.2 per load 126 210 112 140 100 120 60 6 1 bath per day 6.30 1 shower per day 10.50 1 shower per day 5.40 Clothes Drying.15 per 35 min 60 20 loads 3.00 Dishwashing Automatic With air dry Hand dishwashing With rinse water flowing.20 per load.18 per load.10 per load.30 per load 120 96 120 180 1 load per day 6.00 1 load per day 4.80 1 load per day 3.00 1 load per day 9.00 Stove Top Burners 6 element.2 per 15 min. 24 twice a day 1.20
8 element.3 per 15 min 11 every other day -.55 Oven.13 for 2 hours 39 15 meals per month 1.95 Toaster Oven Making toast.8 for 2 hours.1 per use 8 3 6 hours per month -.20 48 uses per month -.15 Microwave Oven.3 per 20 min 15 20 min per day -.75 Coffee Maker Brew cycle Warm cycle Entertainment Radio Television.1 per pot nominal Nominal.2 per hour 9 3.5 3.6 48 50 pots per month -.45 50 hours per month -.18 8 hours per day -.18 8 hours per day 2.40 Refrigerator.24.33 per day 140-200 7 10 dollar a month Blow Dryer.1 per 15 min 7.5 Used everyday -.38 Lights 60 watt 60 on the porch 100 watt.1 per 4 hours.7 per day.2 per 4 hours 7 43 43 4 hours per day -.36 On continuously 2.15 4 hours per day -.60 Water Heater Heat Loss Uninsulated electric set at 150⁰ Insulated electric set at 120⁰ 163 42 7.50 per month 2.10 per month *Statistical Information courtesy of Eugene Water and Electric Board 1. For each category circle the statistic in the Typical Monthly Cost column that best represents your lifestyle. Before moving on to learn about steps you can take to reduce overall energy use in your home, what observations can you make about the costs of daily home activities? In what areas do you see potential for costs savings. For example, if you wash clothes in hot/ cold cycles, consider reducing your consumption by washing clothes in cold/cold cycles (Tip: Modern detergents are designed to be effective with just cold water). Write down your thoughts in the space below. Answer Key to Part 1