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 There is
a major energy hemorrhage gushing out of the vast majority of American
homes. Billion of dollars per year are currently being lost through leaky
heating and cooling ducts. These leaks waste 20 to 40 percent of our
heating and cooling energy. In California alone, the potential
savings from sealing residential ducts adds up to $1-2 billion per year.
That's enough to fund the state's current utility rescue plan AND enough
to build an extra 1,000 megawatts of generation -- each year. Now, simple new
technology makes it possible to seal these leaks.
 Lighting
researchers here have developed a high performance, energy-efficient table
lamp for use both at home and in the office. The lamp uses two fully
dimmable compact fluorescent lamps to direct light down to illuminate a
desk, and/or up toward the ceiling, providing indirect room lighting.
This two-lamp
system matches the combined luminous output of a 300-watt halogen lamp
and a 150-watt, incandescent table lamp while using only a quarter of the
energy.
 Homeowners
dealing with energy billing pains can find relief through two websites
that custom-design an energy and money savings plan for their specific
home and locale. These interactive sites invite residents to input
information about their dwelling and then produce a tailor-made list of
improvements, calculating the cost and the savings from each upgrade.
In addition, one site also calculates the air pollution created by the
home's energy usage. The other is especially tailored for
energy-efficient home remodeling.
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