Natural Light Alarm Clock

Conserve electricity at home this summer

It’s hot and we all want to use our air conditioners to stay cool, but we also need to conserve electricity or there’s going to be outages. That’s one of the messages representatives from the Bandera Electric Cooperative told a meeting of about 30 seniors Tuesday, June 14, at the Lakehills Civic Center. The meeting, sponsored by Bandera County TRIAD, brought information about how to conserve electricity and prevent elder abuse.

Kevin Ferrell said with the heat in Texas this summer home thermostat settings and even the length of a person’s shower is going to be critical to maintaining control over a person’s electric bill.

A person’s home has an envelope of insulation, ducts, vents, doors and windows that can save energy or waste it. The operation of a person’s heat and air conditioning system and even the water heater can effect how much energy is used.

Some ways to save electricity in the summer is to have shade trees around the house, especially deciduous trees for shade on the west side.

Other general ways to save electricity include using natural (sun) light when possible. Rainwater can be collected to reduce well pumping. Set thermostats to 78 degrees in the summer and 68 in the winter.

Dark colors increase the heat in the area, including black asphalt and dark paint on the house.

Older houses tend to be drafty. As much as 600,000 cubic feet of air, enough to fill three Goodyear blimps, passed through an older Texas house daily.

As much as 31 percent of cooled air goes through the floors and the ceiling in a house. Ducts can lose 15 percent and fireplaces 14 percent. Doors lose 11 percent and windows 10 percent. Some of these can be sealed, such as doors, windows, and even the flue for the fireplace.

Ways to keep the cool air in are chalking and weatherstripping. Insulation in the ceiling needs to be R-38 to R-49. If all you have is R-19, then you need to consider adding insulation. Some 12 to 18 inches of blown-in insulation can also be used in houses.

Skylights can bring natural light into a home. A dimmer switch on some lights will also save power by not using as much light when you don’t need it. Fireplaces are usually not a very efficient heating method. Glass doors in front of a fireplace is a good idea.

If you’ve got curtains and blinds on your windows, close them during the day and open them at night. Replace air conditioning filters every three months. Install programmable thermostats and set a daytime temperature and a nighttime temperature. It doesn’t have to be as cold in the house in the evening as it is during the day.

10 of the best alarm clocks for getting the kids out of bed!

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So the kids have just had a whole 6 weeks of late to bed and late to rise during their school holidays and now as a parent, it’s your job to get them up for school again each morning. No easy task. Not only do you have to try and rouse them at least 4 times in between getting yourself ready and jumping in the shower but you have to make breakfasts and lunches and avoid any fighting! This is definitely a stressful time and you end up feeling like you have already been at work for a few hours before you have even left the house to go to your other job. As a result, everyone arrives home tired and grumpy and it can feel never ending. But fear no more as alarm clocks are coming to the rescue of parents everywhere.

These laborious alarm clocks are just about everyone’s worst nightmare. When I say “laborious,” I mean that these bad boys are going to force your kids to get up and put some effort into shutting them off. Whether they automatically roll away from them or blast a high-pitched sound, these alarms aren’t for night owls. Check out these alarm clocks and see which one you would like to put a hammer through if it woke you up and hence, which one you are buying for the kids! Who knows, it might just make you that much happier and with time to book those Dover Calais ferries for your day trips to France like before the kids were born!

1. Sonic Grenade

The Ear-splitting “sonic grenade” brings out the same affect. Simply pull the pin, and launch the grenade into the target’s room. In ten seconds a very annoying and piercingly loud noise (one of three volume settings) will blast out from the alarm. The best part is that to stop the alarm the sleeper has to find you so you can put the pin back in. Now that’s annoying. A great prank toy or a great travel gadget for getting your family going on those early mornings no one wants to get up.

2. Clocky

Meet the clock that runs away! The alarm clock runs away and hides when you don’t wake up. Clocky gives you one chance to get up. But if you snooze, Clocky will jump off of your nightstand and wheel around your room looking for a place to hide. Clocky is kind of like a misbehaving pet, only he will get up at the right time! This thing can jump from up to 3 feet and moves on wood and carpet. Perfect for giving your kids the run around.

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