MCIA Document Shredding Event This Saturday, October 17th

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The Mercer County Improvement Authority will be hosting its October Document Shredding event this Saturday, October 17th from 9 am – 12 pm in Lot 4 of 651 South Broad Street in Trenton (across from the Mercer County Administration Building).  The event will be held rain or shine.

A maximum of eight boxes and/or Bags of Paper will be accepted.  No Household chemicals will be accepted.  This event is for Mercer County residents only, NO commercial businesses allowed.  Proof or residency is required (Driver’s license).

For more information call 609-278-8086 of visit www.mcianj.org.

Get Ready to Save Energy This Winter

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As Fall arrives, we start turning on our lights for a longer time every day and our heating system begins to kick in. This is the time to think about using efficient lightbulbs, tightening up our homes to prevent leaks, and even considering a new more efficient heating system. USDOE estimates that heating and lighting account for over 45% of your home’s energy use. So taking a few steps now will not only protect the environment, it will leave a little money in your pocket.

Below is a starter list of Energy Efficient measures to consider this Fall. You can find even more fall and winter energy saving tips at these two sites:

https://njcleanenergy.com/misc/residential/energy-saving-tips/fall-savings

https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/fall-and-winter-energy-saving-tips

No-cost/Low-cost EE measures

  1. Plug up leaks.  With some simple tools and low cost weather stripping you can reduce your heating cost by 10%. You could have a contractor do these tasks also.
  2. Set your thermostat at a lower temperature.
  3. Install and use a programable thermostat.
  4. Replace inefficient lightbulbs with LEDs
  5. Make sure that your heating system is tuned up
  6. Change your ceiling fan to go clockwise and help push down the heat down

If you know that your home heating system is outdated and inefficient, now would be a good time to replace it. You can find a contractor and learn about the Warm Advantage Rebate Program here: https://njcleanenergy.com/residential/programs/warmadvantage

If you’re feeling more ambitious, but don’t know where to start you can hire a Home Performance with Energy Star contractor to do a full house assessment: https://njcleanenergy.com/residential/programs/home-performance-energy-star/home-performance-energy-star-r.

Determined to improve your Home Energy Efficiency? There’s help available.

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The New Jersey Clean Energy Program (NJCEP), operated by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU)  should be your first stop.

NJCEP provides incentives and rebates for residents and businesses to install energy efficient equipment, which may cost a little more. The NJCEP incentive offsets a portion of this high cost  to make the purchase and use of the EE equipment more cost effective.   Our 6 favorite programs are listed below, but you can visit  https://njcleanenergy.com/residential/home/home to learn even more.

  1. Charge Up New Jersey provides up to $5,000 toward the purchase of a new Electric Vehicle (EV). An EV will save you approximately $1,100/year in fuel cost and avoid 15,800 pounds of CO2 per year.
  2. Energy Star Appliance Rebates provide $15 to $300 for rebates for washers, dryers, refrigerators, air purifiers, dehumidifiers, room air conditioners.
  3. EE Lighting provides instant rebates at the cash register on Energy Star LEDs. To find a store near you click  Find a Store Near You
  4. Home Performance with Energy Star (HPwES) is a whole building EE approach.  Rebates for the work you choose to do are up to $4,000. HPwES can save up to 30% on your electric and natural gas bill.
  5. EE Cool Advantage provides $300 to $2,000 for EE air conditioning equipment.
  6. EE Warm Advantage provides $250 to $2,000 for EE heating equipment.

Energy Vampires

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When not in use appliances can still use energy.  The US Department of Energy (USDOE) estimates about 5% of your household electric bill is spent on vampire loads that go to keep your electronics and other appliances ready to be used at a moment’s notice.  That is about 425 kWh/year or $70/year or 225 pounds of CO2/year for the average household.

Want to find the vampires lurking in your home? Try a “Kill-A-Watt” meter that allows you to monitor a the energy a device is using even when turned off or shutdown. Learn more at: http://www.p3international.com/products/energy-savers.html or check with the Hopewell Township Branch of the Mercer County Library to see if you can borrow one.

One way to manage vampire loads is to use advanced power strips (APS). The USDOE estimates that a homeowner could save $200 per years using APS.  Visit  https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/articles/choose-right-advanced-power-strip-you for help in choosing the right APS.

Energy Conservation vs. Energy Efficiency

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Energy conservation is any behavior that results in the use of less energy.

Energy efficiency is replacing inefficient equipment or appliances with a similar device that uses less energy to perform the same function or task with the same degree of performance or service.

For example: turning a light off is energy conservation while replacing a CFL bulb with a more efficient LED is an energy efficiency measure.

Energy tip: The least expensive energy and the most environmental benefit is the energy not used.  When something is not in use turn it off. Start hitting that off switch today!