Green Energy Used On Thanksgiving

Green Energy on Thanksgiving

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How to Have a Green Thanksgiving

Getting ready for the holidays can drain you physically and mentally, but it can also drain your home of energy. When you’re trying to use green energy and keep everything in your home running efficiently, it can be frustrating when a single day of festivity can suck up tons of energy—and money. Here’s a fun fact for you:  more than 213 million kWh of electricity will be used nationwide on Thanksgiving just roasting turkeys. On top of turkeys, most people are cooking dozens of other dishes that use energy, and chances are, you’re heating up the house to keep your guests happy. Thankfully, we’ve got some green energy-inspired tips to make sure that your Thanksgiving can be part of the green energy solution.

1. Monitor the thermostat.

This is one of the easiest steps you can take for a green Thanksgiving. What often happens when a large group of people gather is incredibly energy inefficient. The heater is turned up too high to make sure nobody is cold. But then, all of the cooking and body heat can make guests too warm, causing them to open windows and doors. This wastes a huge amount of energy and can be prevented by simply monitoring the temperature on the thermostat. Keep it set low, knowing that the kitchen will do most of the heating work for you.

2. Make your oven multi-task.

For fear of ruining dishes, many Thanksgiving day cooks opt to cook every pie and dish separately. However, aside from taking up all of your holiday time, this uses a ton of unnecessary energy. As long as the temperature you need to cook your dishes at varies by no more than 25 degrees, you can do some double duty cooking. Also, don’t preheat the oven for too long. Especially when cooking something like a turkey, the slow cooking process can start with a heating oven.

3. Use the right pots and pans, and opt for slow cookers whenever possible.

This is a general green energy tip, but it’s especially important for a day when you’re cooking multiple dishes at once. Here are some guidelines:

  • For the oven, use glass or ceramic dishes. They retain heat better and allow you to turn the oven down by about 25 degrees.
  • Use the right size pots for your burners.
  • Use lids while you cook.
  • Start the day before and use slow cookers.

4. No peeking.

While you and your guests will be enticed by the scents and sounds of Thanksgiving coming to life in the oven, try to keep everyone from peeking. Every time the oven door is opened, the temperature can plummet 25 degrees, forcing your oven to use excessive energy to get back to the proper cooking temperature. If you absolutely need to check on a dish, flip on the oven light and use the oven window instead.

Have a Happy Green Thanksgiving!

If you follow just a few green energy tips, you can help reduce the amount of energy that’s used on Thanksgiving, not just for your home, but for everyone. Thanks for being part of the green energy movement, and have a very Happy Thanksgiving!