More Than180,000 Get Energy Active!

More than 180,000 visitors have come to the Get Energy Active Web site since its May 29 launch. Thank you for visiting the site and signing up to receive our monthly newsletters. Don’t forget to bookmark the site and check back frequently for updates. And tell your friends to Get Energy Active too.

Prepare Your Home for Energy-Savings This Winter

As you pack away your summer shorts and take out your sweaters, it’s a good time to prepare your home for the cooling season as well. By taking a few simple steps, you can save money this fall and winter. You will also be making your home more comfortable and helping to protect the environment.

Here are 5 no-cost tips to help you get started:

1. Caulk and weather-strip around windows and doors (save 1 – 4 percent on heating costs).
2. Regularly clean or replace the filter in your air conditioner and furnace (save up to 15 percent on annual energy costs).
3. Set your heating thermostat as low as comfort permits. (Each degree over 68ºF can add 3 percent to the amount of energy needed for heating.)
4. Lower your water heater’s temperature to 120ºF (save up to 10 percent on water heating costs; check temp with a thermometer under a tap).
5. Keep the curtains open on sunny days and closed at night (save 2 – 12 percent on heating costs).

Electric Companies: Helping Customers Use Energy More Efficiently

America’s electric companies offer a number of programs and services designed to help their customers save electricity and money. These energy-efficiency programs are making a difference. Between 1989 and 2005, electric company energy-efficiency programs helped the country to save almost 797 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity. That is enough electricity to power almost 74 million homes for one year! And, these savings are equal to the annual electricity output of more than 340 medium-sized power plants. Learn more about electric utility efficiency programs and services.

And don’t forget, as the days are growing shorter so are the opportunities to take advantage of the federal government’s tax credits for buying energy-efficient products and appliances. Consumers can qualify for up to $500 in tax credits until the end of the year. Energy-efficient furnaces, windows, insulation, hot water heaters, and more are all eligible for the tax credits. Unlike a tax deduction, which lowers your taxable income, a tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction in your tax bill. These tax incentives expire at the end of 2007. So if you’re planning to improve your home’s energy efficiency, start now and take advantage of the tax rewards.

Hot Topic: Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles

Plug-in hybrid-electric vehicles (PHEVs) are the next-generation hybrid vehicles that will help our country enter a new era of clean transportation and greater energy independence. While still in the development phase, PHEVs promise to deliver important benefits over traditional hybrid vehicles. Like current hybrids, PHEVs use battery power in addition to an internal combustion engine. However, unlike traditional hybrids, PHEVs do not depend on gasoline to recharge their batteries. Instead, PHEVs are plugged in to the existing electricity system, using an electrical outlet to recharge the car batteries.

The Electric Power Research Institute and the Natural Resources Defense Council recently released a comprehensive study that found widespread use of PHEVs in the United States could significantly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while offering the potential for major improvements in ambient air quality. The research measured the impact of increasing numbers of PHEVs between 2010 and 2050, including the national environmental impact of potentially large vehicle fleets that would use electricity from the power grid as their primary fuel source. The study found that widespread adoption of PHEVs can reduce GHG emissions from vehicles by more than 450 million metric tons annually. That’s equivalent to removing nearly 83 million passenger cars from the road. Learn more.

Get Energy Active on YouTube

To help spread the word about the Get Energy Active Web site, we’ve launched a series of weekly energy-efficiency tips on YouTube. YouTube is a video-sharing Web site for visitors to download and share videos online. Check out our weekly YouTube videos and learn other ways to get involved!