The Palisadian-Post has partnered with locally founded environmental nonprofit Resilient Palisades to deliver a weekly “green tip” to our readers. This week’s tip was written by Sheda Morshed.
As we enter the warmest months of the year, Los Angeles will most likely face another round of record-breaking temperatures like we did last year. As LADWP and neighboring utilities have limited carrying capacity, the number and severity of blackouts we experience will be inversely proportional to our collective efforts to conserve energy at home (and in the office), especially during peak hours. Here are a few ways you can reduce your family’s energy demand, most importantly between 4 and 9 p.m.:
- Every summer (and winter), replace your air conditioning intake filter(s). A dirty filter reduces the efficiency of your air conditioner (and furnace).
- Assuming no one’s health is at risk, consider turning up your thermostat to as high as 78 degrees.
- Use a ceiling fan to circulate the cool air.
- Laundry:
– Avoid doing laundry during peak hours.
– Wash in cold water to cut energy demand by 90%.
– Line dry when possible.
– Use two to three laundry balls (or tennis balls!) to speed up drying times by up to 40%.
- Avoid using other heavy appliances during peak hours, including your oven and dishwasher.
- Turn off all unnecessary lights. And if you haven’t already, update your bulbs from incandescent to LEDs.
Visit “Flex Your Power” for more energy-saving tips.
If more Palisadians take even some of these mindful steps, we can collectively reduce, or even eliminate, our summer blackouts.
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