You lose energy when air conditioners and hot-air furnaces have to work harder to draw air through dirty filters. Cleaning a dirty air-conditioner filter can save 5 percent of the energy used. That can reduce CO2 emissions by 175 pounds a year.

Don’t use pleated air filters! You wouldn’t drive your car towing a hundred pound block around—don’t do that to your furnace! Overly restrictive filters slow airflow through your furnace—usually well below what the furnace requires for efficient operation. Reduced airflow leads to higher energy bills and durability issues, (overheating the furnace, over cooling the A/C […]

In winter set your thermostat at 68°F by day and 55 degrees at night. In the summer set the thermostat at 78 degrees. In winter, lowering it by two degrees reduces heating-related CO2 emissions by 6 percent. That adds up to a reduction of 420 pounds a year for a typical home.

To lighten your environmental impact and save money in the cold and drafty winter season, check that the damper in your fire place is properly fitted and firmly closed when not is use to avoid drafts and loss of heat up the chimney.