Energy conservation is critical to the health of the planet. The wasteful attitudes of the 1980s should not continue any longer. Global warming is showing us that we need to conserve instead of waste or the planet will soon be damaged beyond repair.

Sources of Energy Waste on a Big Scale

In addition to the obvious areas of waste such as leaving lights on in unoccupied rooms, there are other sources of waste that are either unknown or uncared about but can cost the consumer a lot of unnecessary money and take a big hit on energy resources.

One mistake involves generators. Many people buy generators just before storms to help power their homes if the town's electricity is knocked out. However, many homeowners make the mistake of hooking the generator up directly to their electrical service panel. This is a big mistake for several reasons. First, it makes the generator work extra hard and uses more energy than it needs to by powering unnecessary appliances.

It can also damage or destroy those appliances by providing a surge of way too much electricity when the power does come back on.

Worst of all, having the generator connected to the entire electrical panel can gravely injure, or even kill, any power line workers in the area.

Smarter homeowners with generators use a generator transfer switch to control exactly what the generator powers. Utilities needed during a power outage are things like the lights and water heater and just these things can be powered with the use of the transfer switch.

In addition, the other appliances will stay safe and no energy will be wasted since the switch allows power either from the generator or the incoming electricity, but not both.

Sources of Energy Waste on a Small Scale

Another source of energy waste goes by several names but they all mean the same thing. Ghost, phantom and vampire energy all refer to energy wasted by leaving chargers and other devices plugged into the wall when they are not powering anything.

An easy way to avoid this phenomenon and to save money on your electric bill is to invest in power strips for groups of appliances instead of plugging them into the wall individually. For example, one power strip in the kitchen can take care of many appliances like the toaster, blender, coffee maker and electric tea kettle.

When used in the kitchen, the entire power strip can be turned off, effectively putting a halt to any lost energy. Even that small but constant loss all day every day will add up. It will add up in your electric bill and may age your appliances before their time. Plugged-in appliances can also cause electrical fires.

Rather than making the effort to go around and unplug each individual item, it makes sense to handle that issue with one simple power strip and one simple off switch.

Think bigger than the kitchen, though. The appliances in the living room and even the bedroom can also be stealing power. The same treatment for appliances throughout the house like lamps and televisions can be used to save power everywhere.

In addition, when an electrical storm is expected, you will just have the choice of unplugging each power strip, not each individual device to keep them safe from damage.

Be a smart homeowner, though, and never overload your power strips or plug them into an extension cord. They are only safe when plugged directly into a wall outlet.

Just giving some thought to the issue and making some small changes can not only save you money but keep all of your appliances safe.