No-Cost Ways to Increase Efficiency in the Cape & Islands

Free Tips

Get an energy audit
Reset your thermostats and reduce heating system usage
Reset your thermostats and reduce cooling system usage
Tune your refrigerator
Use other large appliances wisely
Turn down your water heater and reduce hot water usage
Turn off unneeded lights and turn off or unplug other equipment when it is not being used
Drive smart
Reduce, reuse, and recycle

Get an energy audit. Energy audits can lead to the adoption of zero-cost and low-cost conservation and efficiency measures, as well as to the identification of high-return investment opportunities.

Every month, a portion of your electric bill goes to support local energy efficiency programs. To take advantage of your contributions to these programs, contact the Cape Light Compact or Nantucket Electric and arrange for an audit to identify cost-effective ways for improving your energy efficiency. If you are natural gas customer, contact Keyspan and arrange for additional energy assessment services and rebates:

Cape Light Compact: All Cape & Vineyard consumers are eligible to participate in the Compact’s efficiency programs. Call 800.797.6699 to arrange for an audit, and visit the Compact’s website to learn more about its efficiency services and incentives for different types of consumers.
National Grid: All Nantucket consumers are eligible to participate in National Grid’s efficiency programs. Visit the company’s website to learn more about its efficiency services and incentives for different types of consumers.
Keyspan: All Keyspan customers are eligible to participate in the company’s efficiency programs. Call 800.292.2032 to arrange for a home energy audit or 800.843.3636 to arrange for a business energy audit, and visit the company’s website to learn more about its efficiency services and incentives for different types of consumers.

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Reset your thermostats and reduce heating system usage. Heating systems consume more energy than any other single end-use system:

Switch controls to "energy saving" settings, if available.
Prevent "overheating" in rooms you occupy by turning down the thermostat at night and turning it back up again in the morning.
Turn down the thermostat when you leave the house for more than 1 hour.
Reduce wasted heat in unoccupied rooms by closing doors and turning thermostats down.
Move furniture away from radiators and vents to increase heat output and air circulation.
Use ceiling and other fans to improve circulation of heated air.
Open and close your window shades, drapes, or other coverings to take advantage of solar heat gain during the day and to keep heat in at night.
Clean your windows to increase solar heat gain.
Check and clean air filters frequently.
Minimize use of bathroom and kitchen ventilation fans.
Close your chimney damper when the fireplace is not in use.

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Reset your thermostats and reduce cooling system usage. Air conditioners can be very energy-intensive:

Switch controls to "energy saving" settings, if available.
Prevent "overcooling" in rooms you occupy by resetting your thermostats and/or turning off the system as comfort is achieved and outdoor temperatures drop.
Reduce wasted cooling of unoccupied rooms by closing doors and turning thermostats off.
Move furniture away from vents to increase cooling output and air circulation.
Use ceiling and other fans to improve air circulation.
Close your window shades, drapes, or other coverings to prevent solar heat gain during the day.
Check and clean air filters frequently.

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Tune your refrigerator. These appliances can account for a significant percentage of electricity usage:

Switch controls to "energy saving" settings, if available.
Prevent "overcooling" by using a standard household thermometer to check and adjust the operating temperatures of your refrigerator and freezer—the refrigerator should be about 37° F and the freezer about 3° F.
Check the gaskets around your refrigerator and freezer doors to ensure that they are clean and sealed tightly—if you close a door on a sheet of paper and then can remove the paper easily, you may need to clean or adjust the gaskets or adjust the doors (or purchase new gaskets).
Improve air circulation and heat dissipation by removing accumulations of dust and dirt from vents and condenser coils and by ensuring that your refrigerator is not touching a wall or countertop.

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Use other large appliances wisely. Dishwashers, washing machines, and dryers can all consume significant quantities of energy:

Switch all appliance controls to "energy saving" settings, if available.

Make sure your dishwasher is full before turning it on, and allow the dishes to air dry instead of using the heating cycle.

Make sure your washing machine and dryer are full—but not overstuffed—before turning them on, use warm or cold water settings, and use air dry settings.
Use a microwave instead of a conventional oven when possible.

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Turn down your water heater and reduce hot water usage. Water heaters can require a lot of electricity or heating fuel:

Reset your water heater’s thermostat to 120° F or slightly higher as necessary.
Take shorter showers and shallower baths—and take showers instead of baths.
Use the "Cold" and "Warm" settings on your clothes washer, rather than the "Hot" setting.

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Turn off unneeded lights and turn off or unplug other equipment when it is not being used. Reducing wasted energy can produce significant savings:

Switch all controls to "energy saving" settings, if available.
Hit the light switch when you leave a room, and turn off unnecessary outdoor lights when you go to bed.
Unplug TVs, entertainment systems, appliances, and other equipment when you are not using them—many of these systems continue to draw electricity even when they are "off."
Shut down your computer, printer, and other peripheral devices when you are done with them for the day.

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Drive smart. As gasoline prices rise, the advantages of using fuel efficiently increase:

Inflate your tires to recommended air pressure—if your tires are not fully inflated, your vehicle’s engine must consume more fuel to travel at the same speed.
Maintain steady driving speeds, ease off the gas pedal in anticipation of the need to slow or stop, and minimize rapid accelerations.
Follow the speed limit on the highway—at higher speeds, it takes more fuel to overcome wind resistance and road friction.
Close your windows and use internal vents to reduce wind resistance on the highway.
Avoid idling during warm weather and minimize idling during cold weather.
Plan your daily errands to minimize distance traveled, and park your car wisely at malls and shopping centers to eliminate short trips.
Carpool when possible.
Walk or ride your bike instead of using your car to make short trips.

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Reduce, reuse, and recycle. Buying less stuff, using resources more efficiently, and helping transform paper, cardboard, glass, plastics, metals, and other materials into new products can reduce the overall amount of energy for which you are accountable:

Stem your tide of junk mail and request electronic copies of bank and other statements.
Use both sides of the paper.
Separate recyclables from your trash stream and visit recycling centers at your town’s landfill and other locations.
Donate toys, clothes, and other reusable products to charities, rather than tossing them in the trashcan.
Use drop-off boxes at the grocery store (for plastic bags), the office supply store (for ink cartridges), and other locations.

A recycled plastic bottle puppet

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