A Retro Look into Saving Energy
By: Kristen Pomer and Laurie Acone
If you think back to the refrigerator that your family had in your
childhood, it probably looked a lot different than the one in your home
today. Think back to the refrigerator that your grandparents had, and
the difference is probably as stark as night and day. With the image of
those old refrigerators in mind, our companies, NSTAR and National Grid,
recently teamed up on a unique event to encourage Massachusetts
residents to recycle old, second refrigerators and freezers.
In a first for the City of Boston, we joined forces to present a
vintage refrigerator “Pop-Up Museum,” in Dewey Square Park – a “cool”
mobile display that featured retro refrigerators and freezers. Our
museum enticed visitors to reminisce about the fridges they recall from
childhood—or remember from old family photos and retro TV shows—and
provided facts about the amount of energy these old appliances consume
and how much they cost to operate. The fact is, older units can use as
much as four times more electricity than newer, more
efficient models.
In addition to the refrigerator display, we drew in hundreds of
people with an on-site radio presence from WZLX 100.7, an educational
booth which provided our customers giveaways and program information,
and a fun scavenger hunt. Visitors were challenged to track down the
answers to trivia questions about the vintage fridges on display.
Winners were then drawn randomly to receive prizes including $50 home
improvement gift cards.
Many people do not know that operating an outdated fridge or freezer
comes with a steep price tag, and these devices can also leak toxins
when dumped in landfills. This recycling program is a great opportunity
for customers to save space, save money and help save the environment.
National appliance recycler, JACO Environmental, picks up old, second
refrigerators and freezers free of charge at participants’ homes. The
outdated appliances are sent to a de-manufacturing facility, where
toxins such as mercury and oils that can poison the environment are
safely extracted. During the process, JACO converts 95 percent of each
appliance into recyclable metals, glass and plastics.
For those of us at NSTAR and National Grid, this program is perfect
for anyone looking to reduce their household energy costs. Just
unplugging an outdated refrigerator saves money. Combine that with a $50
reward and free pickup, and the benefits outweigh the convenience of
having extra cold storage. We hope that by bringing this tangible
display to consumers and showing them how to reduce costs while saving
energy, they will be inspired to participate in the program.
This appliance recycling program is offered to Massachusetts
residential electric customers
of NSTAR, National Grid, Western
Massachusetts Electric Co., Unitil and Cape Light Compact. For more
information on responsible appliance disposal, check out the Responsible
Appliance Disposal program at:
EPA.gov. Before you buy a new refrigerator, don’t forget to look for the
ENERGY STAR.
Click
here to watch a video recap of the event.
Kristen Pomer is a Program Manager of
energy efficiency programs at NSTAR Electric & Gas. Ms. Pomer is
responsible for all aspects of implementation planning, marketing,
delivery, customer service, and vendor management of NSTAR’s Lighting
and Appliance programs.
Laurie Acone is Program Manager of
Residential Lighting and ENERGY STAR Products at National Grid in MA and
RI. Ms. Acone joined National Grid in 2007 as a Call Center Supervisor
in the Customer Organization, and has been part of Energy Efficiency at
National Grid since 2008.
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