This is you St. Augustine "Green" Page.
If you sincerely care about our environment and saving energy then this page is a must read and a bookmark for you!
I am St. Augustine's only Certified EcoBroker and I have specific training in environmental, energy and green issues.
I am providing local "Green" resource information for your reference.
Let's start with the interior and work our way outside. At the most basic level we need to understand our energy consumption. About 60% of our monthly electric bills in Florida can be attributed to two appliances: the hot water heater and the heat pump (air conditioner). Tankless hot water systems and gas powered water heating systems are more efficient than conventional electric hot water heaters. If you are looking at replacing an electric hot water heater look at the yellow Energy Guide tag on each unit. It will tell you the cost to operate per kilowatt hour and an average annual cost to operate based on National average utlity rates. Check the warranty to see long the HWH is rated and save your receipt and the yellow tag for your records. Air conditioning systems can really differ from one house to the next. The SEER or Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio is now required to be a minimum of 13 SEER or higher - a 30% savings in Federal minimum efficiency levels. Yet some of the most efficient systems available are rated as high as 23 SEER and you can receive major rebates for purchasing units like this. I contacted Superior Service in St. Augustine and they offer a Maytag 12 year warranty 23 SEER unit which is the most energy efficient one on the market this year. For HWH and A/C systems also look for Energy Star ratings.
Let's look at other appliances. Most dishwashers today are Energy Star rated and highly efficient. Keep in mind that you really want to run them when they are as full as possible so as to conserve energy and water. Ranges that are most efficient run on gas and a few electric ranges are Energy Star rated. Refrigerators have come a long way to energy efficiency and most are Energy Star rated. Home Depot has a site you may want to check out for "green" energy saving products at www.homedepot.com/ecooptions. Keep in mind that by working through a Century 21 agent I can get you discounts for a variety of products at Lowe's.
Don't forget to turn you A/C thermostat to 78-80 degrees in the summer and about 64 degrees in the winter. Set your fan to "auto" and not to "on".
