NO COST:

1. Turn Up Your Thermostat:  During warm weather months, set your thermostat to 74 degrees or higher when the work place is occupied, and 85 degrees or off after business hours. Using ceiling or room fans allows you to set the thermostat higher because the air movement will cool the room. You can save up to 3 percent for each degree the thermostat is set above 72 degrees.

2. Reduce Your Lighting:  A general rule is that a light should be off when no one is present. Turn off lights in unoccupied areas, remove excess lighting and turn off signage and other lights not necessary for security and safety.

3. Be Energy Smart With Office Equipment:  Turn off office equipment or set it to "power down" when not in use. Setting computers, monitors and copiers to use sleep-mode when not in use helps cut energy costs by approximately 40 percent. Remember to turn equipment off at the end of the workday.

4. Use Shades and Blinds:  On hot days, draw the curtains and/or shades to keep the sun out. Remember to close doors to the outside to keep in cooler air.

5: Want more tips? Click here for more free energy saving ideas from the Energy Star webpage.

LOW COST: 

1. Install Efficient Lighting:  There are a number of low-cost solutions a business can invest in to make its lighting much more efficient and save money in the long run. For example, replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents, which can last up to ten times longer; upgrade fluorescent lighting fixtures to high efficiency equipment; replace incandescent lights in exit signs with LED fixtures. This can reduce costs of these signs by up to 95 percent.

2. Install Programmable Thermostats:  Programmable thermostats or time clocks can automatically control temperature settings and save energy.

3. Use "Smart" Power Strips:  These sense the presence or absence of office workers and turn the attached equipment on or off accordingly.

4. Choose the Smallest Monitor:  The bigger the monitor, the more energy it uses. Switching from a 17-inch monitor to a 14-inch monitor saves energy by as much as 35 percent.

5. Maintain Your HVAC System:  Perform regular maintenance to keep your heating and air conditioning systems running more efficiently.

INVEST IN LONG TERM ENERGY-SAVING PRACTICES

1. Retrofit Lighting:  Convert T12 lights and magnetic ballast to T8 lights and electronic ballast. Install occupancy sensors, which can reduce lighting costs by up to 40 percent. Convert hallway and non-public security lighting to energy saving 25-Watt T12 bulbs. Convert TV surveillance cameras to newer equipment, which may not require floodlighting.

2. Weatherize Buildings:  Install awnings, solar shade screens or sun-control film for windows and apply a heat-blocking coating to your roof. Some incentives and rebates may be available to help defray initial costs.

3. Install an Energy Management System:  An EMS will control heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment and lighting systems automatically to maximize efficiency and savings.

4. Buy ENERGY STAR Products:  Energy Star certified equipment and products use less energy than other products, save money on utility bills and help protect the environment. Establish a business policy of only buying Energy Star certified equipment such as computers, monitors, and printers.

BUILDING AND DESIGN TIPS

1. General Cooling Measures:  Think carefully about using "green" design features. Use evaporative cooling wherever possible. Attempt to use natural ventilation and light surfaces. Encourage day lighting of interior spaces in the design. Surround all buildings and cover parking lots with trees to reduce local environmental temperatures. Specify light colored aggregates for local access road and sidewalk pavements.

2. Landscaping And Use Of Shade:  Combine architectural features and shading so that a minimum of the building envelope is exposed to the sun. Design landscaping around the building and over parking areas so that no parking area is exposed to the sun. This will not only reduce the heat build-up in parked vehicles but will reduce the temperature of air blowing against the building by 6 to 8 degrees.

3. Combined Heat And Power Systems:  Often there is a balance between the heat requirements of an institution and its electrical needs. This energy match means that the waste heat from a small electrical generator can be used to generate electricity.

4. Solar Power on Rooftops:  Consider installing solar electric collectors and/or solar hot water collectors on the roof. Ensure that the building design includes adequate support for the dead weight load and the wind stress, and all conduits for pipes or wires.

5. Water, Gas And Ventilation:  Design a gray water collection system for irrigating landscaping. If natural gas is unavailable, consider ground source heat pumps. Design public space ventilation to respond to occupancy needs with such features as carbon dioxide detectors. Avoid air curtains that allow air leakage from conditioned spaces. Pressurize and test all ducts for leakage before dropped ceilings are installed.

6. Engineering Requirements:  Be sure that Performance Assurance or building commissioning is included in the engineering services provided by the engineer.

REBATES AND INCENTIVES

1. Plug your zip code into this incentive and program finder to find possible money-saving incentives in your area. 

2. California households under construction or looking for alterations can use the California Energy-Smart Homes Program for incentives towards building electrification.

3. Households earning between 80% and 150% of their area's median income qualify for 50% electrification project rebates through the Home Electrification and Appliance Rebate (HEAR) program.

4. Property tax exclusion for solar energy systems and Renewable electricity tax credits through DSIRE. 

5. Rebates through the CSE Self-generation Incentive Program are offered to customers that install clean and energy-efficient distributed generation and storage technologies to reduce electrical demand and greenhouse gas emissions. 

6. There are two tax credits available for businesses and other entities that purchase solar energy systems: the ITC and the PTC. Follow the links to find out which one is right for you.

7. The California Energy Commission’s energy efficiency incentive programs include zero- and no-interest loans and grants. Funding is available to cities; counties; special districts; and public schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, and care facilities.

8. Comfortably CA is a statewide energy efficiency program serving HVAC distributors with resources for specified high-efficiency residential and commercial heating and cooling equipment. The program offers resources and incentives to distributors, manufacturers, and retailers for selling high‑efficiency HVAC equipment, and provides no-cost training to contractors and technicians.

9. Go Green Financing is designed to help California building owners access budget-friendly financing solutions for their energy efficiency projects. These projects can help Californians reduce energy consumption and increase building comfort while supporting the State’s ambitious greenhouse gas reduction goals.

10. Through a variety of projects and equipment, the Market Access Program helps commercial customers reduce their electric use and save on their energy bill. 

11. Multifamily Energy Savings Assistance program (MFES) [esamultifamily.com]  [esamultifamily.com] provides no-cost and reduced-cost energy efficiency upgrades and project assistance to eligible affordable multifamily properties and residents in California.

12. Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH)  provides financial incentives to all qualified affordable multifamily apartment homes to aid in solar installation costs.

13. On-Bill Financing provides loans for qualified upgrades, and you pay the loan – interest-free – through a line item on your monthly utility bill. On-Bill Financing offers eligible customers zero-percent financing for qualifying facility improvements.

14. Commercial buildings that meet the energy-saving criteria set by ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001 can qualify for a Commercial Building Energy Efficiency Tax Deduction of up to $1.80 per square foot, depending on the age of the structure.

 15. Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy, is a financing program that enables commercial property owners to obtain long-term, low-cost loans for energy efficiency, renewable energy, and water conservation improvements to their buildings.

16. Southern California Edison (SCE): Provides rebates for multifamily building upgrades like lighting, HVAC, and water heating systems.