Where does all the juice go?

As part of a Renewable Energy Technology course through the University of Calgary, I was fortunate to be assigned the task of completing an in-home energy audit. I picked up a cool little digital energy meter from Canadian Tire and went to town.

My most noteworthy findings...

• The light fixture in our bathroom with the two 150 Watt halogen bulbs is responsible for more than 8% of our monthly electricity consumption.
• My 12 year-old JVC stereo system (not one, but two cassette players) steadily consumes 20 Watts of electricity... when it's off!
• Reminding my pregnant wife that the ceiling fan in the bathroom draws 45 Watts does not help to start her day on a positive note.

Here's the full breakdown of where the juice goes in our condo. If a fancy pie chart like this doesn't land me a good grade on my assignment, I don't know what will.

Refrigerator Efficiency

I read an article in a recent issue of the National Geographic Green Guide that suggested that I might save a shwack of cash by cleaning the condenser coils behind my refrigerator. As I hadn't (nor had my wife) done this since moving in to our condo four years ago, I figured it was overdue.

Back of the fridge before...

...and after.

Condenser fan before...

...and after.


The article suggested that this (combined with a couple of other tips) could save me $50 a year. Strangely enough, my utility bill arrived two days later and, for completely unrelated reasons, it showed a 12% decrease from the previous month.

Harbinger of good things to come?