Alternative energy and energy conservation are two topics that are seen more frequently in news headlines today. As alternative energy resources are being developed and made available to consumers, energy conservation practices can be implemented by people today.

Energy conservation techniques are not rocket science, most management practices are just common sense. For example, "How can we reduce gasoline consumption?" One answer might be to drive less, by car pooling to work or to see a movie. Planning ahead to reduce the number of trips to the store is another fuel saving technique. The fuel economy of your car can also be increased through proper maintenance. For example, keeping tires inflated at recommended levels improves gasoline efficiency by 3% and changing your car's air filter as recommended can improve mileage efficiency as much as 10%.

In your home, over half of the energy expenses come from heating and cooling. If you have an older, less efficient furnace or air conditioner, replacing them with high efficiency units will certainly save energy and money. If replacement is in your future plans, efficiency and appropriate sizing information can be found at the Home Energy Saver website http://hes.lbl.gov/hes/vh.shtml.

However, you can also reduce home energy use many other ways. A programmable thermostat on a new or older system will use less energy while the family is away at school and work. You can save up to 10% of your heating and cooling costs by turning back your thermostat 10 to 15 % for 8 hours during the day, all done automatically by a programmable thermostat.

A clean air filter in your heating and cooling system will keep it operating efficiently and save energy. You should check and clean your filter once a month. Another inexpensive home energy saving technique is to seal air spaces around windows and doors. Caulking and weather stripping materials are paid for quickly by the energy savings in heating and cooling your home.

Adding insulation to your home and replacing single pane windows may be more expensive initially, but over time these improvements will also be paid by the realized energy conservation they provide. If window replacement is not in the budget, use window blinds to your advantage. Close the window blinds at night in the winter to reduce the cooling effect of a single pain window. In addition, take advantage of the sun's radiant energy on south facing windows by keeping blinds open during the day.

The addition of storm windows on the outside of the house will reduce energy transfer through the glass. A temporary alternative is plastic film on the inside of the window during the winter months.

In your home you can also reduce electricity use by turning off lights when leaving a room or by putting timers on lamps and other lights. Televisions and computers are big consumers of electricity, so turn them off when not being used.

Compact fluorescent bulbs, CFLs, offer another opportunity for you to save energy and money in the long run. These CFLs use only ¼ of the electricity of standard incandescent bulbs. Although the CFL bulb cost more initially, the 4.5 year lifetime savings of the bulb compared to a standard incandescent is approximately $60.00.

Finally, recycling also helps reduce energy consumption. The energy saved by recycling one aluminum can, would power a television for 3 hours. Recycling glass uses 50% of the energy compared with the production of new glass. Paper recycling can save 65% of the energy that new paper production uses.

Energy conservation makes dollar and cents for you and it makes sense for the environment by conserving fossil fuels. If you have questions about energy conservation contact the University of Illinois Champaign Extension Unit at 333-7672.