The chart above depicts how energy consumption is distributed among the various types of electronic equipments that we use. Every year, the price of electricity goes up a little bit more. More importantly, the amount of pressure that we are putting the environment through is not a sustainable one, which means that very soon there will be a massive disaster. Already there are more than enough on our plates with tsunamis like Boxing Day 2004, or hurricanes like Katrina and SIDR. One of the important ways to salvage our life from the devastating effect of these calamities is by saving electricity.( Really! How? - Let's save the science for another post )
Below are some ways in which we can save electricity:
1. Electricity Usage Monitors
The figures that you are provided with in the monthly electric bill do not give you much details of the way in which the electricity is spent. All that you learn from the bill is the total expenditure that you have made in a month. Purchasing an electricity usage monitor will enable you to see where your electricity is going. These meters can either show you how much each device is consuming, or show you how much money is being used by the electricity in real time.
2. Keep the television, video, play station, and all other devices (when they are not being used) turned off.
3. Do not leave the electrical devices in standby mode. Some device
s can even use up to 90% of power in standby. So what is the point of keeping stuff in standby if you are not going to use them? But there may be the problem of forgetting. So you can get a power saver device. These automatically turn off appliances when they are in standby mode, thus saving your power.
4. Remove all your tungsten incandescent light bulbs. There are very inefficient and produce more heat than light. So a lot of energy is simply wasted. CFL bulbs are much more efficient. They convert most of the electricity into light. A typical CFL bulb will consume four times less energy and last 8 times longer. So the extra cost is offset by the benefits derived.
5. It is better to let your clothes be hang-dried rather than using a drier. You get to save a lot of energy this way.
6. In order to use heat efficiently, use the cooker to cook a lot of food together. That way, you make efficient use of the heater.
7. Instead of a cooker, use a microwave to heat reheat food or to cook a small amount of food. Microwaves usually need a lot of electricity but they take a very short time to cook the food, so they are efficient overall.
8. You can save as much as 5% on your heating bill by turning down the heating system. Instead of turning the heat up, wear an extra layer of clothing to stay warm. If there are individual radiators in each room, then turn them down to appropriate level. For example, keep the bedroom at 16°-18°, the bathroom at 20°-22°C. If you are not using a room, then keep the radiator turned off in that area.
9. When you purchase electrical goods, get the ones that are energy efficient. They cost more than the inefficient ones. But the cost savings that they will generate will cover up for that many times. These models are also very well made in comparison to the ones that are not efficient. They are also longer lasting. Look for ratings like A++, A+, A etc ratings in EU and for energy star ratings in USA.
10. Keep the condenser coils at the back of the freezer or the fridge clean. If they are filled with dust then they will get inefficient and lose efficiency by about 25%. Hence you may incur higher bills even on an efficient device. Vacuum clean the condenser coils and keep the fridge economic.
11. Always keep the fridge full of stuff. But do not overstuff the fridge; let air flow freely though the fridge.
12. If you fold clothes right after you bring them out of the tumble drier, then you can save money on ironing the clothes. (To all the students and lazy people like me, it can SAVE your job as well :-P..)
13. Cool foods before you keep it in the fridge. It takes more energy to cool hot food than it takes to cool normal food.
14. When keeping liquids in the fridge, make sure that they are not uncovered. If they are uncovered, they evaporate. This makes the fridge work harder.
15. Do not heat more water than you need. Heat only the appropriate amount needed for cooking or drinking. You can get an eco-friendly kettle to help you to do that.
16. Convection ovens are a better option as opposed to normal ovens when cooking food. In a convection fan, a small fan circulates hot air throughout the oven and cuts cooking time by up to 30%.
17. Do not keep opening the oven door or the fridge door for no reason. Every time you open the oven, 20°C of heat is lost. An almost same effect is seen in the fridge as well.
18. Keep lamps in the corner of rooms. This way the light is reflected off two walls and your room will be more illuminated.
19. Power companies charge different bills at different times. Bills are higher in peak hours and lower in other times when the demand is low. Make a habit of using the appliances when the demand is low. That way you can use the same amount of power but at a lower cost. For example, you should turn the dishwashers on just before going to bed and not directly after the dinner. Bills will be lower at that time.
20. You can use motion sensor switches that can switch off power when there is now one. These are usually programmable and turn bulbs off in a room if they do not detect motion for a specified amount of time.
21. Tumble driers are one of the greatest electricity wasters. A typical tumble drier needs 2400 W electricity as opposed to 400W that a spin drier spends. A tumble drier uses heat to dry clothes. A spin drier removes water from the clothes simply by rotating the and letting centrifugal force do the drying. Buy a spin drier with about 2500 to 3000 rpm.
22. Use low emissivity glass in home designs. It is a type of insulating glass that keeps interiors warmer when winter and cooler when it is summer. This glass has a metal coating on one side of it which blocks long wave radiation. It allows UV rays to get inside but does not allow it to get outside. So the room remains warm. In summer, it keeps the rooms cool by not letting infrared light to get inside the house.
23. Buy a laptop instead of a desktop if it is practical. In desktops, get an LCD instead of a CRT monitor. Let the screensaver run. It saves a lot of energy. Switch off the computer when not in use. This increases the lifetime of the computer, contrary to popular belief.
24. A normal shower head delivers 10-18 litres of water per minute. A water saving shower head consumes 5-7 litres per minute. An efficient shower head is able to save at least 1500 KWh of electricity in a year. At an average lifetime of 10 years, it will also save about 70,000 litres of water.
25. Do not use electric heating equipments to heat your home. The best solution is to use a renewable source like solar thermal source to heat the home. However, even gas heating is more efficient.
26. Put a lid on the pan when it is used for cooking. This reduces the heat loss from the pan and cooking time will also be reduced.
27. Use an adjustable thermostat for a warmer temperature in summer and cooler in winter. In the summer, wear shorts and in winter, use blankets. It will save you tons of money.
28. Plant trees around the house. They will give you shades and will keep your home cool. In the winter, the leaves will be shed so the sunlight will be able to enter the house and keep the place warm.
29. Close the doors and windows when you are going out/coming in. But if it's nicer outside, then switch off the heater or the AC and go out for a walk.
30. Get an energy audit team to audit your home and you will find how inefficient your home is in terms of saving electricity. They can also suggest ways to save electricity.
31. Use your conscience. It has to be you who will take the responsibility to save energy. There is no point crying your heart out for nature if you do not practice it yourself. So do that and be a responsible citizen. It is our duty to keep the world as good as it can get.
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