Estates

Energy

Simple ways you can help to reduce UWE’s Carbon Footprint in your day to day work.

Make use of natural light – do you really need the lights on?
How many people are in the office – could you use a desk lamp rather than lighting the whole office?
If you are last to leave, turn all the lights off!

Switch your monitor off when you are not using it. Screen savers do not save energy (they sometimes use more energy)! Get into the habit of switching off when you have a meeting, go to make tea or even if you are reading for a few minutes. Every little helps!
Enable the standby and hibernate modes on your PC (see information below) to switch off for you!
Make sure someone in your office is accountable for large office equipment. Is the printer turned off every night? Could it be put on a timer switch?
Turn off at the wall. Your phone and computer do not need to be on over night. Try putting all your equipment on one multi-way extension lead. Then you only need to switch one plug off every night.
Do you really need to print? Only print when it is necessary, and ensure you print double sided.
Don't over fill the kettle - it will take longer to boil and use more energy than necessary.

Follow the simple steps below to set up standby on your computer and start reducing UWE’s carbon footprint today!

For windows systems prior to Windows 7;

Right click on your desktop and select ‘Properties’. This opens the display properties window
Select the screen saver tab
Click on the ‘Power’ button next to the ENERGY STAR logo and set your preferred options. For example, you could set ‘Turn off monitor’ to after 5 or 10 minutes and ‘System standby’ to after 15 or 20 minutes. Have a play around and see what suits you!

For Windows 7 Users;

Right click on your desktop and select ‘Personalize’. This opens a page with the heading ‘Change the visuals and sounds on your computer’
Click on the screen saver icon (in the bottom right hand corner). The Screen Saver Settings window will open
Click on ‘Change power settings’
Click on ‘Choose when to turn off the display’ on the left hand side of the screen. The Change Settings page will open.
Set your preferred options. For example, you could set ‘Turn off the display’ to after 5 or 10 minutes and ‘Put the computer to sleep’ to after 15 or 20 minutes. Have a play around and see what suits you!

Enabling power-save options can reduce energy consumption by 95%!

Put lids on pans - this will speed up cooking time and save energy!
Share cooking with the people you live with. Cook for each other, or use the oven at the same time (and don’t forget to turn it off when you’re finished!)
Don’t over fill the kettle – it will take longer to boil and use more energy than necessary!

As with office equipment, make sure that all of your equipment at home is switched off rather than on standby when not in use
Think about upgrading your loft insulation and installing cavity wall insulation. There are grants for these sorts of energy efficient schemes. Check the Centre for Sustainable Energy in Bristol website for further info: www.cse.org.uk. The Energy Saving Trust also has a lot of good information (see link below)
Try turning your heating down by 1ᵒC, this can save up to 10% on your heating bill!
Use energy saving light bulbs

Email us at EnergyTeam@uwe.ac.uk with any ideas for energy saving measures!

For further energy saving information and tips, please visit the following websites;

www.cse.org.uk – The Centre for Sustainable Energy in Bristol
www.energysavingtrust.co.uk – The Energy Saving Trust
www.carbontrust.co.uk – The Carbon Trust
www.lowcarbonbuildings.org.uk – Low Carbon Buildings Programme