Energy Conservation Tip #1 Always turn off all lights when you leave a room or when they are not needed. It is estimated that 26% of a building s electricity is used for lighting. For D-11 this equals $650,000 annually. This makes lighting one of our biggest opportunities for energy savings. Most D-11 buildings have already been converted from T12 lights to T8 lights saving the district approximately $350,000 per year. The use of natural day lighting or turning off lights while using projection equipment can help increase our savings. But the biggest savings are to just turn them off when you leave the room! Energy Conservation Tip #2 Unplug electrical devices when they are not in use. This includes projectors and amplifiers, cell phone chargers, coffee pots, etc. It is estimated that up to 25% of electricity in schools is used by plug load. Plug load is anything that draws power from an electrical outlet. Many devices continue drawing electricity from the outlet even when they are turned off. The best energy conservation practice is to unplug electrical devices when they are not in use. Please remember safety first and refrain from unsafe activities like climbing on chairs to unplug projectors. Attached is a link to student educational curriculum on plug load that provides additional information and an example of how to estimate plug load: http://www.need.org/needpdf/plugloads.pdf Energy Conservation Tip #3 Report heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment that does not shutdown during unoccupied times with a work order. It is estimated that 40% of a building s energy is used by the HVAC system. This number can be much higher when the system is working extended hours. You should hear air moving during occupied times. This is because D-11 schools continuously bring in fresh air during the school day to insure excellent indoor air quality. Conditioning fresh air requires large amounts of energy. Now is a great time to identify malfunctioning equipment so it can be repaired before the heating season. You can also have your building managers verify that the exhaust fans in your restrooms are shutting off at the end of the day. If something doesn t seem right, please contact your Building Manager or Principal for submission of a Work Order since this allows us to track all repairs. Energy Conservation Tip #4 Do your best to get lights, electrical devices, and HVAC systems in your building shutdown by 4:00 pm. Electric rates nearly double in many of our building between 4:00 and 10:00 pm October through March. This is known as the on-peak demand period. Having a large electrical demand during this time period for just one day of the month can cost hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars. By keeping our demand lower during this time we can reduce the cost of the electricity we use during the day when school is in session. Avoid scheduling optional events from 4 pm to 10 pm October through March, if possible.
Energy Conservation Tip #5 Dress accordingly for the outdoor temperatures and layer clothing to help improve your comfort. Heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) set points generally fluctuate a minimum of 4 degrees (± 2 degrees) due to equipment capabilities. Fall and spring present additional challenges for our HVAC systems. We generally need heating in the morning and air conditioning in the afternoon. Many of our HVAC systems are not capable of switching from heating to cooling instantaneously. Some large units are controlled off an average temperature of numerous rooms meaning some will be hot and some will be cold. The problem may be more noticeable than at home because air flows continuously during occupied times to supply your space with fresh air. Please understand that the temperature in your area may not always be exactly where you desire it to be. Layering clothing is your best defense against temperature fluctuations. Energy Conservation Tip #6 Be sure to keep exterior doors and windows closed while the heating and cooling system is in operation. Leaving doors and windows open while at recess can cause your system to work overtime. In some cases more than one room is tied to one thermostat. In these cases leaving doors or windows open can cause your neighbors to be too hot or too cold in addition to wasting energy. Heating is the largest utility expense in D-11! Energy Conservation Tip #7 Please don t tamper with thermostats or heating/cooling overrides. Tampering with overrides may provide you temporary results, but often causes discomfort in the long run. Remember to keep books, etc. off of heating and cooling equipment, especially where it blocks airflow. If you are experiencing an operational problem with your heating and cooling equipment please contact your building manager so a work order can be created and the problem resolved in the most appropriate and permanent manner. Energy Conservation Tip #8 Reducing air leaks in your building is one of the easiest ways to save energy. In addition to saving energy, preventing air leakage also improves occupant comfort and indoor air quality. You can help by looking for air leaks around exterior doors and windows. Report damaged or leaky windows and doors to your building manager so plans can be made for their repair. In homes it is estimated that 25 to 40% of heating and cooling energy is lost to air leaks. Attached is more information on how you can save energy at home too. http://www.energystar.gov/ia/new_homes/features/airsealing1-17-01.pdf Energy Conservation Tip #9 Colorado has over 300 days of sunshine each year. We can all take advantage of this great resource to help heat our buildings. During heating season open your blinds during the day when the sun is shining to help heat your building. Then close your blinds at the end of the day to help keep the heat in. When summer approaches and we begin the cooling season you will want to reverse these steps.
Energy Conservation Tip #10 Please turn all computers and monitors completely off when they are not being used for more than 2 hours and at the end of the day. When shutting down your computer please allow updates to install when prompted. Computers may be left on Thursday evenings for updates. Shutting down computers is estimated to save approximately $20 / computer / year. D-11 already achieves some of this savings by setting all computers and monitors to enter sleep mode when they are inactive for a few minutes. Shutting down computers when they are not needed offers additional savings. D-11 operates over 13,000 computers meaning these savings can really add up. Energy Conservation Tip #11 Thanksgiving Break Shutdown 2010 Thank you for practicing D-11 s energy conservation tips. With your help this year is sure to be our best year for energy savings yet. Below is a list of reminders for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. Please do your best to complete the following tasks prior to leaving your building for the Thanksgiving holiday: Turn off all classroom and office lights. Turn off all computers. Insure exterior doors and windows and tightly closed with blinds closed. Turn off and unplug all office equipment (photocopiers, toasters, coffee makers, etc ) except printers Turn off projector equipment, amplifiers, etc Clean out and unplug all personal refrigerators. Unplug all personal space heaters. LTTs and LTEs: Turn off computer CPUs, monitors, and other related equipment. Building Managers/Kitchen Managers: Be sure thermostats in portables are setback. Please do not shutdown cafeteria/kitchen point of service machines they will be remotely shutdown by Food Services. Unplug all vending machines that are not needed by building staff or community activities over the break. Verify all kilns and exhaust fans are off. Team Clean one area of the school at a time so that lights can be turned off in other areas. Deploy pool covers.
Energy Conservation Tip #12 Look for additional electricity savings opportunities like reducing artificial lighting. One opportunity exists in hallways with glass to the outside. In these areas, interior lights may be turned off when natural day lighting is sufficient. Another opportunity is to report exterior lights on you building or parking lot that come on before the sun goes down or stay on once the sun is up. You can report these to you building manager so a work order can be created. Please remember to only use the lights in the areas in which you are working after hours. Electrical costs consume 50% of D-11 s annual utility budget. This means our best opportunity for savings is from reduced electrical consumption. Reducing electrical consumption also has the largest effect on reducing our carbon footprint. Energy Conservation Tip #13 Be sure your building manager schedules work orders for after hours holiday events and performances. This will ensure you have heating and ventilation for your event. When requesting a work order, be sure to identify the specific space you will be using as well as the precise times. This will help facilities best support your event. When scheduling for multiple spaces needed, always try to consolidate the activities into the same area of the building to reduce the amount of equipment needed. Your building manager and the facilities department can help you determine the best location to hold activities if desired. Christmas Break Shutdown 2010 All: Thank you again for practicing D-11 s energy conservation tips. All of your hard work is really paying off. We just completed applications for 30 energy star labels out of 52 eligible schools. With a strong finish to the year we may be able to increase this number. Below is a list of reminders for the upcoming Christmas holiday. Please do your best to complete the following tasks prior to leaving your building for the holiday: Open cabinets below sinks to prevent freezing pipes in cold weather. Unplug all holiday decorations. Turn off all classroom and office lights. Turn off all computers. Insure exterior doors and windows and tightly closed with blinds closed. Turn off and unplug all office equipment (photocopiers, toasters, coffee makers, etc.) except printers Turn off projector equipment, amplifiers, etc Clean out and unplug all personal refrigerators. Unplug all personal space heaters. Unplug all power strips. LTTs and LTEs: Turn off computer CPUs, monitors, and other related equipment. Building Managers/Kitchen Managers: Be sure thermostats in portables are set back.
Please do not shutdown cafeteria/kitchen point of service machines as they will be remotely shutdown by Food Services. Unplug all vending machines that are not needed by building staff or community activities over the break. Verify all kilns and exhaust fans are off. Team Clean one area of the school at a time so that lights can be turned off in other areas. Deploy pool covers. Energy Conservation Tip #14 Combating Cold Weather Please do your best to help prepare for cold weather. You can help by leaving cabinets below sinks open during cold weather to prevent pipes from freezing. You can also layer clothing to stay comfortable while your heating system catches up. When a building heating system is off over the weekend, it takes a little longer to warm the mass of the building on Monday morning. Please try layering clothing and giving your building a little extra time to warm up before calling in a work order. Extreme conditions can present more work orders than we have resources to handle. A little extra time can alleviate some work requests by helping maintenance personnel to prioritize and respond more effectively. Cold weather is also a great time to identify and report leaky doors and windows to your building manager for repair. Remember your heating system is near its maximum capacity during extreme cold so don t prop or leave doors open. Energy Conservation Tip #15 Watering Please do your best not to attach a hose to your building for spring watering and cleanup. Most people don t know that D-11 s irrigation systems are metered separately from our building water. When you attach a hose to your building for watering, D-11 pays twice as much for that water. This is because we pay sewer fees on building water. For concerns with your buildings landscape please be sure look to the District s Grounds Shop for professional help. Spring Break Shutdown 2011 All: Thank you for practicing D-11 s energy conservation tips. All of your hard work is greatly appreciated. Below is a list of reminders to help prepare your building for spring break. Please do your best to complete the following tasks prior to leaving your building for the break: Open cabinets below sinks to prevent freezing pipes in cold weather. Turn off all classroom and office lights. Insure exterior doors and windows and tightly closed with blinds closed. Turn off and unplug all office equipment (photocopiers, toasters, coffee makers, etc ) except printers Turn off projector equipment, amplifiers, etc Clean out and unplug all personal refrigerators. Unplug all personal space heaters. Unplug all power strips. Do not shutdown computers this year so IT can perform updates. Computers will be shutdown remotely by IT. Monitors and printers may be turned off.
Building Managers/Kitchen Managers: Be sure thermostats in portables are setback. Please do not shutdown cafeteria/kitchen point of service machines they will be remotely shutdown by Food Services. Unplug all vending machines that are not needed by building staff or community activities over the break. Verify all kilns and exhaust fans are off. Team Clean one area of the school at a time so that lights can be turned off in other areas. Deploy pool covers.