We are committed to supporting the city of Nottingham in its aspiration to be carbon neutral by 2028. Here are 28 tips for reducing your energy consumption, and carbon footprint, at home and on campus.
1. Only boil enough water for what you need.2. Store any excess hot water in a flask.3. Boil and cook with lids on your saucepans.4. Turn off laptops and phones when you aren’t using them.5. Use energy efficient light bulbs.6. Ensure that lights are turned off when you don’t need them.7. Aim to heat your house between 18-21⁰C.
8. Instead of boiling the kettle multiple times make a round of hot brews for your team!9. Do not leave electrical equipment running overnight or at the weekends unless there is a special reason to do so. 10. When purchasing or leasing any type of electrical equipment, check energy efficiency and choose the model with the highest rating for energy efficiency; 'A+++' rating. 11. Close curtains/blinds at dusk to stop heat escaping overnight. 12. If your office feels cold pop on a jumper rather than plugging in an electric heater.13. Keep window sills clear to make the most of daylight.14. Sit those who feel the cold most nearest to the radiator.
15. Optimise the use of sterilisers/dishwashers by only using when on full loads. 16. Could high energy tasks be run overnight or at weekends to reduce the University’s maximum demand?17. Turn off electrical equipment when not in use, including analytical equipment.18. Whenever not in use, switch off ancillary services to reduce energy use and maintenance requirement (e.g. air compressors, local extractor fans and vacuum pumps).19. Check that refrigerated storage is placed away from heat sources to ensure maximum efficiency. 20. Regularly defrost refrigerated storage to avoid clogging up of ice.21. If possible, only use fume cupboard for tasks which present a hazard, i.e. not for storage or general lab work.
22. Make sure the lights are turned off if you are last to leave a room.23. Make the most of daylight by keeping the blinds open.24. Turn off electrical appliances when not in use.25. Report heating, cooling and lighting faults via the Estate Office works request form.26. When the heating is turned on, keep doors and windows closed to prevent wasting heat. Do not open windows to control the temperature, as this is a waste of heat.27. Take the stairs rather than the lift. 28. Choose active travel or hopper buses to travel between campuses.
Estate Office, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD Email: sustainability@nottingham.ac.uk