A Quest for Green

So our efforts to be green started small (kind of, but thats for a later post). We started off with the basics and dreamed big from there.

To start we decided to buy compact fluorescents (CFLs) to replace the cheap light bulbs that were quickly burning out. We have over 233 screw in light bulbs. We already have 101 forty eight inch fluorescent tubes. CFLs have been shown to save a lot of money over time, as compared to regular incandescent bulbs. While the up front cost of CFLs is greater they last longer and they save a good amount of energy, so you save money by buying them less often and by saving money on your energy bill.

In some of the high traffic areas we have installed motion sensing and timed switches so that the lights turn off when they are not in use. While the impact of these is not as big as other means, we want to do everything we can.

In our common areas we have lock boxes over the thermostats so that they cannot be adjusted. They are set two or so degrees cooler in the winter and two degrees or so warmer in summer. There are obviously financial benefits for each degree that you turn the thermostat down.

I am sure there are some things I am forgetting, but we'll keep you updated.