Lab Energy
At U-M, labs and clinical spaces account for 59% of energy use and 63% of emissions. Check out this dashboard that displays the relative impacts of different types of space.
“Chill up” your freezer
Did you know that ultra-low temperature (ULT) freezers consume as much energy as 1.5 average US households? Did you know that you can reduce that energy consumption by 30-40% just by raising the temperature by 10°? Here are some other supporting facts:
- ULTs used to be held at -65° or -70°. The switch to -80° was not rooted in evidence showing that samples have greater stability at -80° — but rather as a marketing tool.
- Most samples can safely be stored at -70°. Hear it from these real labs across the country that have been storing samples at -70° for years.
Maintain your freezer
- An unmaintained freezer uses 12-15% more energy than a maintained one.
- Request help with freezer thaws and filter cleanings.
- An estimated 30% of samples are out of date or unusable. Regular cleanouts save space and reduce the number of cold storage units needed, saving your lab money.
- While doing cleanouts, check whether some samples could be moved to less energy-intensive forms of cold storage. For example, DNA doesn’t need to be stored at -80°. Review this study comparing DNA stored at -80° vs -20°.
Join the Freezer Challenge
This 6-month challenge encourages labs to reduce freezer energy use. Join the challenge to see how much energy you can save!
Shut the sash
Fume hoods use the same amount of energy as 3.5 US households! By shutting the fume hood sash any time the unit is not in use, you can reduce energy use by more than 40%. Request a “shut the sash” reminder sticker.
Autoclaves
Autoclaves are large energy and water consumers (60-90 gallons of water per load). Be sure to run your autoclave or dishwasher only when the unit is full. You can also consider right-sizing your unit to fit the needs of your lab space better. Large steam-jacketed autoclaves use much more energy and water than a front-loading non-steam-jacketed autoclave.
Unplug equipment or use outlet timers
Lots of equipment uses energy even when turned off. Consider unplugging equipment when not in use or placing items on outlet timers so they turn on only when needed.
Share equipment
Sharing equipment is a great opportunity to save energy, water, money, and space. Use U-M’s core facilities or consider sharing equipment with nearby lab spaces — especially if equipment is rarely used!
