How I Crush My OhmHours When My Home Is Already Energy Efficient

My Home Energy Profile

• My boyfriend and I live in a two bedroom apartment in San Francisco.  
• We have all energy star appliances and LED lights, don’t have air conditioning or a microwave, and are away from home during the day and sometimes get home late.  
• As a result, our normal energy usage per hour tends to be below 0.3 kWh and is often around 0.04.

My General OhmHour Strategy

We started off by making sure we are not running our washer dryer or dishwasher during OhmHours and charging and unplugging devices with batteries, like laptops and phone.  

Next we started using smartplugs for our appliances that draw energy in standby mode and our device charging station to automate savings when OhmHours happen when we are away from home.  By setting these on schedules for when we are asleep or on vacation we have also lowered our already low energy bill.

I keep a small set of devices charged in a kitchen drawer so we're always ready after dark:  my camping headlamps, a USB backup battery for my phone, wireless headphones and speaker for entertainment.

If we can be home near the start of OhmHours we sometimes shut the circuit breaker off.  That helps us earn the maximum amount of rewards every time.

Since we usually know about OhmHours a day in advance we sometimes plan to be away from home during that time, eat dinner later, do candle light yoga or read during that time.

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My Toughest OhmHour Challenge: Hosting Book Club During a 2-Hour OhmHour

I once had an OhmHour scheduled for when I was hosting book club.  I wanted to earn as many rewards as I could during the event, so I made sure I had enough ice for beverages the night before, prepped and laid out food and drinks right before it started, lit a few candles throughout the living room, kitchen, hall, and bathroom, opened all the windows, and shut off the circuit breaker.

It made for a fun topic of conversation and I made $80 on referrals that night!

My Biggest OhmHour Fail

During our first big summer OhmHour we unplugged everything besides the fridge, prepared a picnic and headed out to the park. Unfortunately by refilling our ice cube trays and letting warm air into the fridge and freezer right before the OhmHour they ended up having to work harder during the OhmHour, resulting in us going over our energy goal and ruining our hard-earned streak.

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Related Posts:

• How I Crush My OhmHours When My Home Is A One-Bedroom Apartment
• Never Break Your Streak Again: Our Best Tips For How To Succeed At Even The Most Inconvenient of OhmHours
• These Devices Mean You Can Crush Your OhmHours Without Lifting A Finger

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