About - Energy and Efficiency (UC Davis Greenhouses)
With over 200 units running 24/7, the UC Davis greenhouses comprise a significant portion of campus energy use. Students identified plausible energy efficiency retrofits for the most prevalent greenhouse types by employing energy audit techniques, literature review, and historical data analysis. The students found that simply changing the Orchard Park lighting system to better match dusk and dawn times for the Summer months would yield an annual energy savings of $13,800 and installing dusk-to-dawn switches for year-round matching would yield annual savings of $53,400.