Small energy surveys lead to big energy savings at Eglin

  • Published
  • By Scott Pogue
  • 96th Civil Engineer Group
EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  October is Energy Awareness month and Team Eglin facility managers are leading the effort to increase energy awareness on base. 

Earlier this month, Master Sgt. Myeshia Lee, 96th Air Base Wing staff, assisted representatives from the 96th Civil Engineer Group's Energy Management Center and Gulf Power engineers on a walk-through energy survey of the wing headquarters building. The survey was designed to identify low-, and no-cost energy conservation opportunities at the facility. Sergeant Lee, facility manager for the building, was able to identify several potential energy savings measures during the assessment. 

Some of the conservation measures identified were replacement of seals around the front and rear entry doorways and de-lamping some of the many lighting fixtures in the building to reduce energy consumption. 

"I learned how to reduce the facility costs associated with the day-to-day operation of my building while not impacting mission success," said Sergeant Lee. "We will ensure all our computers are set for sleep mode during periods of inactivity and centralize printers where feasible."

Other measures identified include the reduction of phantom energy loads. A phantom load is electrical consumption that cannot be readily accounted for. The main cause can be attributed to another energy management term known as "energy vampires," electrical devices that consume power in your home and place of work even when they appear to be turned off, but are actually operating in a low power mode. Most electronic devices require energy even while they are turned off.

"Lighting can account for as much as 30 to 40 percent of a building's energy use", said David Erickson, Gulf Power's Eglin customer service manager. 

These measures can be implemented with no loss of lighting quality and can be accomplished with little effort, he said. 

Some of the major consumers of standby power include computers, multifunction printers, computer speakers, copiers, fax machines, flat-screen TVs, DVD and compact disc players, VCRs, stereos, power tool chargers, radio chargers, and microwave ovens just to name a few. Even devices such as cell phone and laptop chargers consume power regardless if the phone or laptop is not plugged into the charger. Combine the many found within the 96th ABW headquarters building with all the other buildings on base and the result is thousands of devices consuming power 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Standby power can account for up to 15 percent of commercial and 10 percent of residential energy use. 

Electronics consume standby power for one of two reasons. They either have an adapter that will continue to draw electricity, or they have devices (such as clocks and touch-pads) that draw power. Anything with a remote control will also draw standby power since the device needs to be able to detect the remote when it's pushed. 

Plugging electronics into a power strip and turning it off when you're not using it is a widely prescribed solution for curbing "energy vampires." 

Civil Engineering has limited control of the energy consuming devices at Eglin. Individually, everyone has the power to control the rest. 

Things you can do:
· Remember to do your part by turning off and unplugging all of the "vampires" at the end of each day and on weekends. The extra effort will help save limited energy resources, funding, and wear on the equipment not only at work, but also at home.
· Power strips draw energy when they are turned on, but not when they are switched off.
· Any decent power strip should have surge protection. Flicking your power strip on and off will not create a power surge capable of damaging electronic devices. In fact, it will protect devices from other surges.
· If you plug in the allowed number of devices, then power strips are safe. Do not plug your power strip into another power strip, or you run the risk of creating an overload.