Personal Awareness and Energy Consumption Brian Hardison Pi Beta Phi Elementary School, Gatlinburg, Tennessee Typical American family has 40 appliances that are routinely plugged in even when not actively being used. Many appliances- even when turned off- use electricity Average household uses $1,900 dollars per year on energy costs according to U.S. Dept. of Energy 5-10% of these costs are from appliances that are plugged in 24 hours/day Computer and televisions consume the most nergy while plugged in. Other appliances that use energy continuously; dvd players, modems, cable boxes, radios, coffeemakers, lamps, toasters, ipod/iphones and other electronic gadgets Goals for students To spark a discussion on how much could be saved if we unplugged the appropriate appliances. Which appliances should be unplugged, which ones should not be? What is an alternative to unplugging appliances? Hopefully this will guide instruction into smart appliances/energy efficient area. https://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=manuf_res.web_based_tools_prodspec Formula 1  - If your latitude is below 25 degrees, multiply the latitude times .87.    Example…Bogota, Columbia’s latitude is 5 degrees    5 X .87 = 4.4 (So, 4.4 would be the estimated angle of panel) Formula 2  -If your latitude is between 25 degrees and 50 degrees, multiply the latitude times .76, then add 3.1. Example… Minneapolis, Minnesota’s latitude is 45 degrees  45 X .76 = 34.2 + 3.1 = 37.3 (So, 37.3 would be the estimated angle of panel). Goals for students Use protractor to determine accurate angle of solar panel If your solar panels produce more energy than needed for your home, what becomes of the exeess energy? What are advantages and disadvantages of solar panels? How could the use of solar panels impact the grid? http://www.solarpaneltilt.com/ Incandescent….60 watt / 1,000(converts into kWh) = .06 x 8,000 hrs(lamp life) x .10(average charge/kWh by utility company) + .25 cents to purchase bulb =$48.25 cost for bulb to operate 8,000 hrs(approx. one year) CFL…..13 watt/1,000(converts into kWh) = .013 x 8,000 hrs(lamp life) x .10 (average charge /kWh by utility company) + 3.00 to purchase bulb = 13.40 cost per bulb to operate 8,000 hrs(approx. one year) Have students figure out savings( 34.85 diff) Average room has 4-6 bulbs Average home has 8-10 rooms Yearly savings Goals for students Calculate difference in savings between incandescent and CFL bulbs Calculate total savings per room, per home and yearly savings Calculate total savings in cooling cost(once bulbs in home are all converted to CFL bulbs) http://www.earthsfriends.com/cfl-vs-incandescent/ Categories Incandescent CFL Watts consumed (W) 60 13 Rated Lamp Life(hours) 10,000 8,000 Electricity cost per kWh($/kWh) .10 Cost per bulb($) .25 3.00 This was supported primarily by the ERC Program of the National Science Foundation and DOE under NSF Award Number EEC-1041877