Cottages

Energy conservation at your cottage involves similar actions to those you would take at home. The following tips will help you to lower the amount of space heating and hot water that you need at your cottage. You'll save energy and money, and reduce air pollution.

To learn more about what you can do visit the Office of Energy Efficiency's Web site.

Tips

• Turn off the water heater at your cottage when you leave. Leaving it on while you are away wastes energy.
•Switch off your heating unit at your cottage. Electrical units can be turned off at the unit, but others that use a thermostat can turn on automatically even in the summer if the weather turns cool. This is a waste in summer if the cottage is empty. Find out how to turn your unit off completely. You may have to switch it off at the fuse box.
•Turn the temperature down in your cottage after the weekend. Keep some heat on to prevent your pipes from freezing.
•If you use your cottage year-round, improve the insulation and caulk/weather strip doors, windows and cracks.
•If you do not use your cottage in winter drain the water from all taps, defrost and unplug the refrigerator, and turn off the main electric power switch.