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Here are some tips for energy saving in every room of your home. You would be surprised at home much you manage to save by following some simple steps to avoid wasting electricity and be more sustainable.
Energy Saving in the Kitchen
Update Appliances. White goods have become increasingly energy efficient so a good place to start your energy saving exercise is in your kitchen by replacing old appliances to new, energy efficient ones with a higher rating such as A++ or A+++.
Clean out the freezer. The freezer can consume a significant amount of energy, particularly if there is plenty of frost built up which traps the cold air from circulating. Make sure to remove accumulated frost regularly, thereby keeping your freezer working at its best.
Positioning your fridge and freezer away from direct sunlight. Keeping these appliances close to sources of heat such as direct sunlight, ovens or heaters causes them to use more energy in order to keep cold.
Do not put hot food in the fridge. While it might seem tempting to put freshly cooked food that will not be eaten immediately into the fridge, this causes the overall temperature inside the fridge to rise. This in turn will lead to higher energy consumption in order to get cold again and reach the temperature at which it was set. Let the food cool down to room temperature prior to placing it in the fridge or freezer.
Use your microwave oven. Microwaves are the most energy efficient appliance in a kitchen so use it as often as possible to heat up food and minimise the use of the oven which consumes plenty of energy.
Other tips in the kitchen include:
- Thawing your food before cooking thereby minimizing cooking time.
- Avoiding opening and closing the oven door to check food as 20% of the heat accumulated within is lost every time the oven door is opened.
- Washing dishes without letting the water run throughout.
- Loading the dishwasher to full capacity before each use.
Energy Saving in the bathroom
Have a shower instead of a bath. Having a shower is much faster and wastes less water. If you do opt for having a bath, do not go overboard with the hot water. Do not forget to turn off your water heater if it is not being used regularly throughout the day. in the long run, it is more energy efficient to turn it off and turn it back on for use once in the evening rather than keeping it running for the entire day.
Use cold water when possible. Try cutting down on the use of the hot water. This is especially relevant for the washing machine which does not require very hot water during a normal wash.
Energy Saving in the bedroom
Lock in the cold air. If you are using an air conditioner in your bedroom, or any other room for that matter, close all your windows and doors to trap in the cold air. If the temperature is too cold, increase the temperature of the air conditioner rather than opening a window to let the air out. Otherwise, the air conditioner will use up more energy in order to reach the room temperature at which it is set. It is also advisable to set the temperature of the AC at between 23 and 25 degrees Celsius especially during the hotter days.
Save energy from technology in your room:
- Configure your computer to “energy saving” mode, allowing it to automatically change to the state of low consumption. This is particularly useful if you use your computer for long hours at a time.
- Turn your computer off at night to save on average 25% of its annual energy bill. It is always worth turning off your computer if you do not intend using it within an hour.
- Turn off your television completely. Did you know that a television in standby mode can use up to as much as half the electricity as when it is switched on?
Turn off those screens!
To view more energy saving tips, read the first part of this article by clicking here.
