Check and Maintain Your Heating System to Save Energy This Winter.

Reduce heating costs by 5 percent just by making sure that heating equipment is working properly.

Almost 35 percent of energy in commercial buildings is used for space heating. As winter approaches, make sure that all heating equiplent is working properly so the system will keep your building(s) heated efficiently.

Maintain the system each month after the initial checkup to keep the system working well throughout the heating season. You will save even more if you find and address major problems.

 

Take These Other Easy Steps to Save Money and Energy This Winter

• Gradually reduce heat settings. Your employees and customers should feel comfortable at 68°F.
• Turn off heat in storage areas, basement or empty space.
• Turn off heat at night, on weekends or other times your business is closed.
• Turn on heat later in the day. Delaying system startup by 30 minutes to an hour will really help*
• Turn off systems earlier in the workday. Your building should remain comfortable for an hour or more*
• Turn off lights whenever possible. Just a few hours a day over a year's time can really make a difference.
• Remove unneeded lighting. Fixtures near doors and windows often burn energy needlessly.
• Use lower wattage or higher efficiency lamps.
• Lower hot water temperature. Unless you wash clothes or dishes, cooler water - about 120°F - will do the job.
• Turn on your computer's sleep mode when you leave your disk. This reduces electricity use to less than 5 percent of full power.

*This may not be necessary if your business uses a air-source heat pump or a geothermal heat pump which maintains comfort most economically at a constant temperature.

Note: If you rent or share your systems with other businesses, work with your landlord or neighbors to reduce energy use.

 

More Resources for Businesses

You can save on energy bills this winter and set up an energy management strategy that saves money year after year by taking more energy saving steps including addressing:

• Heating, cooling, and lighting systems that operate at full load when not needed.
• Problems with heating and cooling systems that lead workers to use their own personal heaters or fans.
• Inadequate maintenance of heating and cooling systems.
• Understanding building efficiency and opportunities for cost saving improvements.

For more information go to American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy - Commercial Buildings and Equipment

Contact your electric and gas company for free energy audits, loans and incentives for energy improvements.

• National Grid - Rhode Island Electric

Is Performance Contracting for You?

What it is
What it can do for your business or institution
How to locate and work with an Energy Service Company

Buildings account for nearly 40 percent of world energy use. Energy service companies (ESCOs) provide measures that cut energy costs by 20 to 40 percent on average. ESCOs plan and install energy saving systems through energy performance contracts that guarantee savings in cost, energy use and pollution emissions at your facilities.

RIOER evaluated the firms on the list of ESCOs (insert link to list). It is important for you to evaluate a firm before entering into a contract. Circumstances may have changed since an ESCO was placed on the RIOER list or a more detailed evaluation may reveal an undisclosed concern.

It is also important that you determine whether the skills and specialties of a firm meet your needs. Some firms may handle only large projects or have a particular technology, measure, method of financing or approach to savings measurement and verification that should be compared to your project needs before you sign a contract.

We also strongly urge you to engage an independent engineering consultant to help with the process from bidding and selection through construction, commissioning and contract administration. You will want to structure the project and contract so that the costs for the 3rd party engineering consultant will be covered by the savings from the project. This person will be like an insurance policy, protecting your interests throughout the contract and assuring that promised energy and cost savings are delivered.

Contact one of the pre-qualified Energy Services Companies.