ABSTRACT
Baseload energy is energy used in a home that is not used for conditioning the air and therefore is not a seasonal load. Even homes that use electric heat for space heating still have baseload energy use that is about 50% of all the electricity used in the home. In addition, there are many houses heated with oil or gas whose annual electric bills are higher than their fossil fuel bills. Baseload energy use is found by analyzing an entire year of utility bills. This can help separate the baseload from the seasonal loads tied to cooling and heating. Generally, refrigerators can be a major source of baseload electrical usage. Whether checking the energy usage on a refrigerator with a meter or a database, be sure to correct for temperature and other factors to establish a final number. Because efficiency declines over time, remember to adjust for the age of the refrigerator when using the database.
