Energy costs are on the rise across the country, but restaurateurs have the power to shave money off their energy bills every month, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington DC. Here are a few ways you can conserve energy and boost profits.

• Use fluorescent light bulbs. Replace incandescent light bulbs with fluorescent ones. This simple step can save you up to $21 a year per lamp for dimmable bulbs and up to $34 a year for nondimming bulbs, according to the EPA. Although fluorescent bulbs are more expensive, the extra cost pays for itself in the end. "We pay $7.50 a bulb [for fluorescent bulbs] but they also come with a three-year guarantee," says Dominic Loweth, facilities manager for six McDonald's restaurants in New York City. Loweth says the change from incandescent to fluorescent bulbs saves him 20 to 30 percent a year. Not all fluorescent lighting is alike, however. If you use standard fluorescent lights and magnetic ballasts, the EPA recommends replacing them with T-8 fluorescent lamps and electronic ballasts for an annual saving of $16 per lamp.

• Keep condensers clean. The EPA recommends cleaning refrigerator and freezer condensers every three months, for an annual saving of $20 per appliance. "You use 55 percent more energy per unit with a dirty condenser," says Loweth, who suggests having a rigid cleaning schedule. The condensers at his McDonald's are cleaned once a week. "That two minutes can save you a lot of energy," he says.

• Turn things off. It may seem like common sense, but remembering to turn off lights and appliances when they're not needed can save you up to $1,000 a year, according to the EPA. At Loweth's McDonald's restaurants, the lights are turned off each night and are programmed to turn on 30 minutes before the store opens. "We've really kept our costs down," says Loweth. "We pay $13,000 a month in electric, but it could be $20,000."

• Install an energy-management system. You can save up to $1,800 a year by installing an energy-management system to control lighting, signs, refrigeration, air conditioning, fans and more, according to the EPA. An energy-management system helps conserve energy and alerts you to a problem with equip- ment before it gets out of hand. Loweth says he installed an energy-management system for about $6,500—a sound investment that will pay for itself in a few years.

• Check freezer seals. Freezers use 30 percent more energy when they aren't sealed properly, says Loweth. By replacing warped or cracked refrigerator and freezer gaskets or hinges, you can save $50 a year per unit, according to the EPA.

• Replace old appliances. Today's appliances come in high-efficiency models designed to use less energy. Replacing a 10- to 20-year-old conventional dishwasher, for example, with an insulated one can save up to $500 a year, according to the EPA; an infrared gas dishwasher can reduce your annual energy costs by $2,900. The EPA also suggests replacing conventional gas fryers with infrared gas fryers or high-efficiency atmospheric gas fryers.

For more information about controlling energy costs, log on to the EPA Web site at www.epa.gov/smallbiz.