Aug
21
With all the cool, rainy weather we’ve had this year in Colorado, it’s hard to believe we’re leaving summer behind, and moving into fall. Even though rain doesn’t seem to be at a shortage, and our reservoirs appear to be at the brink, its still important to think green, and put as many water and energy saving tips to use as possible.
Here are 7 ideas to help you turn green as we move into fall.
1. Water your grass, flowers, trees and bushes on an as needed basis. With the amount of rain 
we’ve been receiving, landscaping doesn’t need as much water as it did in drier years. Install rain sensors on your sprinkling systems, or monitor your plants’ needs before turning on the hose.
2. Look for green cleaning methods. Instead of using harmful chemicals in your daily cleaning, look for green-friendly alternatives instead. Laundry detergents, bathroom and kitchen cleaners, and drain cleaning products all have safer alternatives.
3. Install energy and water saving appliances and fixtures in your home. Take advantage of the various rebate programs offered throughout the Denver region:
Denver Water Rebate
Castle Rock Water Rebate
Aurora Water Rebate
Colorado Springs Rebate
4. During the warm summer months, we tend to use cooler water. Instead of turning the faucet on and allowing the water to warm, we simply use it as is. That changes in the cooler fall and winter months. Consider installing a hot water circulating system. Without changing out your current hot water heater, you can enjoy instant hot water, allowing you to waste less and conserve more.
5. Turn off all outdoor water sources, and insulate outdoor pipes. Cracks can turn to slow leaks, which can lead to thousands of gallons of wasted water, or even more expensive problems down the road.
6. Change your landscaping, putting in more drought tolerant plants. Even though this was a cool, wet summer, Colorado remains in the prairies where we can expect dry, hot days in coming summers. Plan now for those days. Check with your local nursery to find the best plants for your area.
7. Watch for leaks and slow drips. Fix tubs, showers, kitchen and bath faucets early to avoid potential problems and water waste in the future.
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Useful plumbing tips, keep em’ coming.
Installing a Redytemp hot water circulator is the greenest path to efficient hot water circulation. Redytemp utilizes a solenoid valve that only opens during an active pumping “cycle”. Unlike passive systems which use a normally open thermostatic comfort valve which only closes (to prevent inefficient hot waterline siphoning) when hot water is at the sink. This means, if you use cold water and the valve is open because no hot water is keeping it closed, you get a mix of water from both the hot and cold water lines thereby, increasing demand on your water heater just by using cold water. Only after the valve closes will the user receive water exclusively from their cold water line.
The RedyTemp also has the ability to protect a homes water pipes from freezing. Using a RedyTemp instead of heat tape makes a big difference when it comes to energy consumption. With heat tape consuming around 5 watts of energy per foot of heat tape any length of pipe wrapped that’s more than 5 feet will consume more energy then the intermittent energy used by a RedyTemp to protect the whole house. Heat tape consumes energy continuously while RedyTemps unique temperature adjustment dial allows the homeowner to choose a low temperature to protect their pipes and save precious resources. When it comes to hot water circulation and going green, nothing beats a Redytemp that’s why it was chosen out of all circulators to be on the Green Me Up TV show a while back.