How Much Energy (and Money) Are you Wasting?
In order to save money on your energy bills it’s important to first understand your energy waste points. Energy can be wasted in a number of different ways, and once you know what to look for you’ll be seeing it everywhere.
Seal drafts
First of all if you feel a draft coming in, that means air can escape, so seal up any drafts around windows and doors with some draft tape and invest in a few draft excluders for along the bottom of your door. Do you have an attic? These guys are particularly guilty for air leakage so ensure they are sealed up nice and tight.
Stop standby consumption
Next, all those blinking lights and digital clocks are costing you money on your energy bills. Standby consumption can cost you up to $250 a year on your energy bills. If your switches are hard to reach you can invest in a standby controller that will turn everything off in one switch in an easy to reach position, some even come with a coloured light so you don’t forget to flick the switch on your way to bed.
Invest in timer switches
How many of you are guilty of plugging in your phone or laptop and leaving it on the charger even when the battery is charged to 100%? If you’re thinking that’s me but I plug it in before bed and forget to take it off the charge then don’t worry as we have a solution. You can buy timer switches that you can set to turn the appliance at the wall to save you wasting energy on over charging your appliances. Also, if you’re one of those people who like to fall asleep with the TV on you will find these timer switches very handy!
Use appliances efficiently
Are you a half or a full load kind of person? If you’re a half loader and only filling your washing machine/dishwasher half full you’re not using them efficiently and needlessly wasting energy. By simply waiting until your appliance is full and then turning it on will reduce your energy bills. Not only will you be using your machine efficiently, you will reduce the amount of water and energy used by reducing how many times you have it on.
Cook efficiently
Now turn your attention to the kitchen as everyone cooks, but are you cooking efficiently? You don’t need to preheat an oven unless you are baking, most people are under a misconception they need to preheat their oven before every use and usually end up with the oven preheating a lot longer than they require. Where it’s not required simply pop your food in the oven, turn it on and start saving. Once your dinner is almost cooked turn the oven off as it will keep its heat long after it’s turned off.
Also use lids when boiling water to reduce hob time. Ensure you maximise natural light in your home, if you find you need to flick a lamp on in the middle of the day you might need to look at your window treatments to ensure that maximum light can get through. If you have shrubs or trees outside your window these might need a trim back.
These points are really just the tip of the energy wastage iceberg. Once you start identifying energy leakage many other waste points will uncover around your home. You’ll not only see the benefits in your back pocket you’ll be contributing to more sustainable future for all of us.
Julie Moore director of Save Energy Save Money
