Harness kids' energy to lower power bills

“When was the last time you cleaned out the lint from your dryer ducts? Do you vacuum the refrigeration coils of your refrigerator regularly?” These were a few of the first questions the community energy services representative ticked off on her clipboard when she came by to evaluate the energy efficiency of our home.

Her visit was part of the protocol for receiving a grant to cover part of the cost of installing solar panels on our roof. We did well. She suggested that we consider a modest amount of additional attic insulation, and update the weather-stripping on our doors. We took the advice seriously, the solar panels were installed, and we’re moving toward greater energy efficiency.

Now we proudly wear “I live in a power plant” T-shirts to stir up conversation with our friends.

Get your school-age kids on board and become energy police as you start new habits to save energy every day where you live. Grab a clipboard, paper and pencil, and start tracking your lifestyle changes this week. Remember, the cleanest kilowatt is the one you never use!

Here are some everyday areas your family can focus your energy on to make a difference. When you work together, you could be well on your way to saving money, and lessening your impact on the environment.

• Shorten showers. If you sing in the shower, keep it to one verse!

• Turn off lights behind you. Your house shouldn’t be lit up like a photo shoot is taking place.

• Wash most full loads of clothes in cool water. Today’s detergents do a lot of the work.

• Replace standard light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs. They use about 75 percent less energy and last at least six times longer, according to the Energy Star program.

• Stop phantom leaks in your home. Kids can be detectives and turn off or unplug unnecessary connections, especially when going on vacation. TVs and computers are big phantom users.

• If your public library offers handheld kilowatt or power-check meters, check one out and let your school-age kids chart the wattage used by your appliances and electronics. The device determines the wattage used per appliance, and the findings can be translated into kilowatt-hours and daily cost of operation. “Wow, check out how many watts it takes to toast my morning bagel!” might be one of the comments you hear.

Donna Erickson’s award-winning series “Donna’s Day” is airing on public television nationwide. To find more of her creative family recipes and activities, visit donnasday.com and link to the new Donna’s Day Facebook fan page. Her latest book is “Donna Erickson’s Fabulous Funstuff for Families.” © 2014 Donna Erickson Distributed by King Features Synd.