Four Thanksgiving Energy-Savings Tips Can Help You Be A #SmartTurkey

NEW YORK – Controlling your energy bill this Thanksgiving will be less stressful if you learn what gobbles up the electricity in your kitchen.

Cooking accounts for 4.5% of total energy use in homes across the country, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). If you factor the energy associated with refrigeration, hot water heating, and dishwashing – that’s as much as 15% of the energy coming just from your kitchen. So here are some savings tips from cooking to cleaning:

Four Energy-Savings Cooking Tips

1. Don’t pre-heat more than 5 – 8 minutes.
2. Use the oven window to check progress.
3. Cook as much of the meal as possible at the same time.
4. When broiling or roasting, don’t pre-heat the oven.

Three Energy-Savings Storage Tips

1. In the freezer, pack items tightly and if there’s extra space use bags of ice.
2. Cover liquids in the refrigerator because uncovered items make the unit work harder.
3. In the refrigerator, give items space to allow cool air to circulate.

Two Energy-Savings Cleaning Tips

1. Fill it up and run the dishwasher with a full load.
2. Only use pre-wash or soak settings if food is dried on or burned.

For more information follow @ConEdison and #SmartTurkey.

Con Edison is a subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc. [NYSE: ED], one of the nation’s largest investor-owned energy companies, with approximately $13 billion in annual revenues and $47 billion in assets. The utility provides electric, gas and steam service to more than 3 million customers in New York City and Westchester County, N.Y.