You can’t manage what you don’t measure: learn how to assess your home or other building for electricity, heating, and water use.
Reducing your energy use is beneficial for reducing energy costs at home and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Most of Alaska’s energy use is from heating, and most heating comes from natural gas or diesel, both fossil fuels which emit greenhouse gasses when burned. Most of Alaska’s electricity also comes from fossil fuels, especially natural gas in Southcentral Alaska and on the North Slope, but diesel and coal are also used in the state. You can learn more about energy production and use in Alaska on the Energy 101 page.
To reduce your energy use, you first must understand how much you’re using. This energy assessment tool (download from “Lesson Resources” in the drop down above) can be as simple as completing the checklist, or you can explore the other tabs in the assessment tool to get more detailed information such as electricity and heating use, energy use intensity, and calculating a simple payback for any efficiency upgrades you would like to do. Full instructions are below the video and also in the first tab of the excel spread sheet.
To learn more about energy assessment, sign up for the AKES “Home Energy Efficiency” class through AHFC. Create an account here and register for free!
For tips to save energy, you can watch this 40-minute webinar recorded in December 2021 (with a focus on winter energy use):
The information and materials provided by the AK EnergySmart program are not comprehensive and do not necessarily constitute an endorsement or approval but are intended to provide a starting point for research. Always check applicable codes and standards.
Important: Do not complete ANY of the instructions without talking to the building owner.
- It is preferred, but not required, to use the following materials: Electricity monitor (such as a Poniie 1500 or Kill a Watt meter), digital thermometer, a refrigerator/freezer thermometer, and pen or pencil. You can skip any steps which ask for these materials if you don’t have them.
- Place the refrigerator/freezer thermometer in the refrigerator, in the middle or to the back of a shelf and leave it in there until step 5.
- From “Lesson Resources” above, download and print the “Energy Assessment Checklist.” You can use either the Excel file (full assessment with in-depth options) or the PDF (just the checklist from the Excel file).
- Walk through the building you are assessing and answer all the questions on the assessment to the best of your knowledge. Add details in the “comments” section. Always have a knowledgable adult or the building owner guide you through the building and assist you in making any changes.
- Partway through, check the temperature of the thermometer in the refrigerator – is it within the indicated range? If it is below the range, then the refrigerator can be turned up a bit to save energy. Make sure you recheck the temperature the day after it was changed to make sure it is still cold enough to be safe. Record temperature and any changes in the “comments” section of the checklist.
- Place the refrigerator/freezer thermometer in the freezer in the middle or towards the back and leave it there for at least five minutes.
- For water temperature (the first question under water use) – you can either check the water heater settings, OR directly measure the temperature. To directly measure, find a sink that is as far as you can get from the water heater. Turn on the hot water and run it for two minutes. Turn on the digital thermometer and measure the temperature of the water. If the temperature is higher than 140F, then the water temperature could be turned down (but not below 120F).
- Check the temperature of the freezer thermometer (as long as it’s been in there at least 5 minutes). If it is below the range, then the freezer can be turned up a bit to save energy. Make sure you recheck the temperature the day after it was changed to make sure it is still cold enough to be safe. Record temperature and any changes in the “comments” section of the checklist.
- Advanced/Optional: Use the electricity monitor to measure the electricity use of different appliances. Record in the “Appliance list” spreadsheet.
- Advanced/Optional: With permission of resident/building owner, look up electricity and heating usage of the past two years and record in the “Electric Use” and “Heating Use” tabs.
- On the checklist, write in 5 things which you marked “no” that you think will be easiest to change. Use the “Energy Savers tips for Alaska” booklet and read the “What you Can Do” portion under each section to get ideas.
- On the checklist, write in five things which you marked “no” that you think will be easiest to change. Use the “Energy Savers tips for Alaska” booklet and read the “What you Can Do” portion under each section to get ideas.
- On the checklist, write in the five things which you marked “no” that you think would save the most money. This is harder without being able to measure everything or if you don’t know how much one thing costs, but typically the most savings will be around space heating, and the next biggest savings will be changing incandescent bulbs to LEDs.
- From those two lists, pick your top five recommended changes which you think would be easiest AND save the most energy/money.
- Advanced/Optional: Complete the “Energy Use Intensity” tab and write more advanced energy saving recommendations in the “Recommendations” tab.
- Share your recommendations with the building owner! Share the “Energy Saving Tips for Alaska” booklet with them for suggested improvements.
