Reduce Energy Consumption
The cost of energy is rising, and we are continually facing dwindling natural resources and the ill effects of harmful environmental practices. Saving energy isn’t as difficult as you think – simple alterations in your restaurant can save significant energy, and you’ll reap these savings in your profit margins.
Below, we highlight simple steps you can take to improve energy consumption. This will also attract energy-conscious patrons to your establishment.
Read on for details.
#1 Use Natural Gas Instead of Oil
Restaurants have considerable heating bills and can benefit from switching to natural gas from oil. A Department of Energy study has shown that such a switch can result in 60 percent lower heating bills for a resident in New York City. This is despite the fact that natural gas is more expensive in the Northeast. How much more would you gain in a restaurant by making this change?
Such an investment may be costly in the beginning, but well worth the cost in the long run. You can take advantage of energy-saving incentives in your state to lower the initial investment.
Additionally, natural gas burns cleaner than oil, which reduces the environmental impact of your restaurant.
#2 Change Your Lighting
Lighting makes up a considerable portion of your energy bills. LED lighting is the simplest option that results in high energy savings without reducing the lighting quality in your establishment.
However, regardless of your current lighting options, there are ways to save small amounts by changing your bulbs.
For instance:
If you have tungsten halogen spotlights, you can replace the standard 50W bulbs with IRC-coated 35W bulbs. The infrared reflective coating reduces the power needed to light the lamp without impacting lighting output and gives up to 30 percent energy savings.
- T8 or T12 fluorescent tubes may be replaced by energy-saving T5 tubes
- Switch off fluorescent tubes when not in use
- Incandescent bulbs may be replaced with LED or compact fluorescent lights (CFLs)
You can find more information on LED bulbs for different lighting needs and fixtures here.
#3 Improve Your Kitchen
Nearly 25 percent of your bills will come from kitchen consumption. Some of this is wasted through non-conscientious usage, so staff training and sensitization is the easiest way to shave off up to 15 percent your consumption.
Ensure unused lights and equipment are switched off, set hot water at the right temperature (a small reduction in the heat setting can reduce as much as 7 percent from your bill without impacting performance).
You can also use an E-cube in your cold room/refrigerators. The E-cube helps to keep food temperature down while reducing the number of cooling cycles in the fridge. Reducing the setting by just 1°C can reduce up to 4 percent of running costs.
How to Improve Energy Consumption
As you can see, simple changes in your restaurant can save thousands of dollars off your annual bills. More importantly, it can help to work with an expert to identify more ways to reduce your energy consumption.
At GWT2Energy, we have the right team for you that works around the clock to help you. We develop strategies and energy-efficiency programs for proper energy management and use. If you want to learn more about creating an energy-efficient restaurant-wide system, contact us today.
