UNPLUG YOUR LIVING ECO-CHALLENGE

Three Months, Fewer Plugs.

Take yourself back to the sweltering heat of two weeks ago. Picture the cement jungle that is New York City. Think about all those A/Cs going full blast and the little meters spinning round and round. Now picture power plants round the clock on overload to satisfy our energy guzzling desires. We all contribute to this scenario. Being the environmental saavy-ists that you are, you do a lot of things to save energy when you leave the house. Turn out the lights, turn off computers, and remove cell phones from their chargers. Take it one step further and unplug those items from the wall. Computers, cell-phone chargers, and other electronics continue to use power even when you turn them off. Nationally, this creates the annual emissions equivalent to 17 power plants.

For our next Challenge, The Brooklyn Green Team invites you to choose a room in your house, the room you feel utilizes the most energy, and Unplug all the appliances that are not in use.

Sign-Up
Let us know you're committed by emailing us at brooklyngreen@gmail.com and writing "(Insert Your Name) Unplugged" or something far wittier.

Facts
The average energy used in a home in the US is 920 kWh (granted that's an average, but still)

If you are convinced that leaving your computer on uses less energy than to turn it on or off and that by turning it on and off will kill your computer, know that's a myth. According to the United States Department of Energy, there are no computers on the market that actually last long enough for the negative effects of turning your computer off and on to affect anything.

According to Whole Living, The energy it takes to run your cable setup amounts to 410 pounds of carbon a year, whereas a satellite hook-up cuts that number almost in half.

Resources

To simplify, plug items into a power strip that you can use as a master switch to turn off when these appliances are not in use. here's where you can get one of those strips.

Get your gadget charger right in BK at 3rLiving in person or online.

This popular mechanics article has some good tips and uses words like trickle and leaking.

Test your knowledge and take this energy quiz.

Did you know? Google will soon have a device for the home that monitors your electricity use?

This educational and somewhat perverse video shows how you can play your part. Cat lovers may want to look away.

The entertaining clip offers excellent advice on unplugging common appliances.

Have friends who might like to participate? Pass this email along. Please send us stories, suggestions, inventions and discoveries you have found. We will post them on our blog or in future emails so you can see the many ways we can all contribute to the Challenge.