Bookmark the Tips Directory on the Conservation Web or order the print version of 30 Simple Energy Things from the Residential Conservation Help Line. The 20 million waterbeds in the United States consume the power of four large power plants. A heated waterbed can use as much energy as a large refrigerator. Leaving it unmade in the fall or winter can double that loss as the heat dissipates in the air.
Evaporation can be a major source of heat loss from hot tubs.
U.S. swimming pools contain enough water to cover San Francisco with a layer of water about seven feet deep. About 30 percent of that water is heated, burning as much natural gas as a city of 600,000. For every hour it's in use, an average pool heater consumes three times as much energy as a home furnace. Pool pumps use about the same amount of energy in an hour as window unit air conditioners. Use a pool blanket.