The U.S Department of Energy has recently taken some innovative measures for decreasing carbon footprint by providing consumers with energy saving tips and incentives. Under this mandate the DOE has launched a series of energy saving programs which have received a highly favorable response from consumers.

Based on the belief that energy saving techniques can only be effective if green initiatives are taken at the industry as well as the household level the DOE has been offering a range of incentives to decrease household energy consumption.

One of the major schemes which have received a very good response from consumers is the Star Energy Saving Program. The DOE is helping consumers in buying more energy efficient gadgets by offering a considerable discount on household products that are energy efficient but are usually much more expensive than their standard counterparts. Home owners can pick up any household device ranging from refrigerators, to room heaters as well as air coolers. The gadgets which can be bought at a discount are starred and are available at most appliance outlets across the country.

Another innovative scheme that has been launched by the Department of Energy is the “How Green is Your Household?” program. This is a project that encourages home owners to take a review of the various power sources in their house through an audit. While the DOE is currently offering a cash incentive for carrying out these audits, what makes this scheme more attractive is the fact that the home owners can avail a discount of up to 35% on any energy efficient replacements that are carried out by them after the audit.

The Community Solar project has also been launched by the DOE to urge neighborhoods to adopt a greener lifestyle which will lead to a considerable amount of energy saving by the community. Residents can avail heavy discounts on replacing normal lights with solar as well as CFL lights. The DOE is also carrying out various workshops for the youth to create more awareness of the impact of household energy on the planet. The workshops have also become a very popular platform to exchange and carry out simple energy saving initiates such as community rain water harvesting and using recycled water for the irrigation of parks and gardens in the neighborhoods.

As part of the DOE’s initiative the Community Energy Saving Project has been recently launched by the DOE in seven states across the country. This project is working with various schools, households and offices in the country to bring out awareness in global warming and the role of consumers in greening the planet. According to one of the directors of this project consumers are slowly adopting a greener lifestyle as they get a deeper understanding of the importance as well as the positive outcomes of energy saving for their families as well as the earth.

If you are in the process of turning your home more eco friendly, opting for some smart energy saving techniques would prove extremely beneficial as well as highly cost effective to you and your family. According to the latest reports released by the UNFCCC (United Nation’s Federation on Combating Climate Change) nearly 32% of our carbon footprint is the result of household energy consumption which can be effectively brought down by half through very simple energy saving measures. The UNFCCC has also ranked U.S as one of the prime consumers of household energy in the world and therefore a major contributor to green house gases.

The U.S government has recently launched several incentives in order to encourage home owners in making more eco friendly choices when it comes to buying as well as consuming energy on household items. One of the programs that have been successfully launched by the U.S Department of Energy across all states is the Star Program which offers consumers a wide range of discounts on the purchase of electronic as well as other household gadgets which have been starred under this scheme.

According to this program shoppers can pick up any household gadget which have been starred and avail discount on their purchase. The discounts vary across the U.S and are being decided by the state departments and the discount is available on gadgets such as air coolers, solar water heaters, refrigerators and several kitchen items that run on electricity.

Another beneficial scheme that has been launched by the DOE (Department of Energy) is the Lighting Incentive under which various households who are interested in reducing their electricity bills can switch to CFL lights and get a hefty rebate on the products while doing so. The use of CFL lights reduce power consumption by 30-60% depending on their efficiency, these lights are much more expensive than normal bulbs and tube lights.

The Lighting Incentive is therefore being viewed as a very efficient step towards the promotion of energy saving at the household level by making CFL’s more affordable and cost efficient for home owners. Consumers can also benefit from the usage of CFL lights in the long run as they help in generating much lower electricity bills.

The government has also come together with all the state housing apartments and has launched a very innovative scheme under which all home owners who are renovating their properties can avail a 15 – 35% rebate on the renovation costs if they have adopted green technologies in their houses such as solar water heaters, energy efficient heating and cooling systems as well as solar powered bulbs for outdoor lighting.

A long lazy bath is loved by all, but have you considered how much it costs you?

The US Dept. Of Energy says that water heating could eat up 15-25% of the energy used in your home. There are various tips to follow while water heating in order to achieve energy saving and cut energy bills.

The standard water heater consumes thousands of dollars in terms of energy wasted. Because of rising cost of power, tankless water heaters have become the rage.

They are popular because of 3 reasons: They consume 2/3rds less energy than traditional water heaters (energy saving), take up much less space and are far cheaper to use.

A conventional water heater holds 30 to 80 gallons of water, according to water use pattern and your home and family size. It works by continuously heating water whether it is in use or not. Thus it wastes a lot of energy. On the other hand, tankless water heaters provide hot water on demand. The water gets heated as it runs via the unit. Electric water heaters work with an element on the inside while gas heaters work with a burner.

A conventional heater costs $300 to $400. Tankless water heaters are much more expensive but long run benefits outweigh original cost. The average cost for a tankless unit comes to $2400 to $3200. But tankless units consume far less energy per year (energy saving) and also earn you tax credits for 30% of installation charges. Tankless units also last much longer saving repair and maintenance charges. All tankless units have a sleek design which make it wall mounted and thus save a lot of valuable space. For a home with many members, installing multiple units may be the solution.

Commercial applications are also growing popular. Resorts across America are installing tankless units in their baths. According to an engineer, thinking that they can do substantial energy saving they replaced their hot water heaters with tankless units. They have gone from storing 650 gallons hot water to simply no storage.

Savings can also come from the kind of energy. Propane heaters are less expensive than electricity. While there were a few mishaps, there were some palpable benefits also. Advantage is the constant supply of hot water for guests. There are no complains from guest about running out of hot water.

But problems like sedimentation of water because of using well water have plagued the resort. But it can be cleaned within few minutes using a strainer. It is incomparable with the three and a half hour time of recovery for a conventional water heater.

Most energy saving efforts will cost more but long term savings and over all environment impact is highly beneficial and thus tankless water heaters will soon become popular.

The U.S government’s recently launched energy saving Star program has proved highly successful across all states which is enabling buyers to earn discounts on appliances that have been tagged with the Energy Star logo.

This initiative is being funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, under which each U.S state has designed their own rebate program on a set of recommended appliances which include freezers, refrigerators, central room heaters air conditioners, oil and gas furnaces, heating pumps, dish and clothes washers as well as boilers. While each state is running its very own energy saving program the scheme is being run through the Department of Energy (DOE).

The process of applying for the energy saving scheme is very simple. Each state has created its own Appliance Rebate program form which can be downloaded from the website of the respective state or union territory. Alternatively consumers can also visit the website of the DOE and go to the section featuring rebates for energy saving star appliances. On clicking on this section, they can choose the particular state and download the form successfully. This page will also help consumers in getting information on the DOE’s state wise energy saving programs including a detailed fact sheet.

One of the unique features of this energy saving program is that DOE is allocating funds to each state based on the region’s population so that consumers can avail discounts successfully and effectively. While the funding depends on the number of residents in the state there is a minimum amount of $100,000 as well. While the states will be continuing the scheme as long as their funds last, consumers can avail discounts only on products that have been purchased within the period of the program as well as some specific appliances which have been tagged under the energy star saving scheme.

The rebate amounts that can be benefited by the consumers depends upon the appliance that is purchased and varies from $50 – $500. There are also a large number of regions which are offering attractive discounts on recycled goods as well. The best part of this offer is that while the government is effectively decreasing residential energy use in the country through the scheme, the market is witnessing an increasing number of consumers who are willing to invest in energy saving appliances over more cost friendly gadgets.