The best way to start saving on electricity is to get smart with the way your electricity is used. By utilising your energy in your household wisely, you will be able to keep your monthly costs down. Depending on the size of your home, the following steps can help you save up to R 5 000.00 a year or more on your electricity bill.
- Unplug devices that are not in use. You may not be aware, but devices that are plugged in and not in use, such as TVs and cell phone chargers, draw a small amount of electricity even when they aren’t being used. If you are not using them for a while, switch them off at the wall. The electricity they consume may seem small, however over a period of time it all adds up.
- Switch off lights that are not in use. Only use lights that are needed for the room that you are in. Practicing this can reduce your electrical bill and money spent on replacing bulbs. Another great way to reduce the amount of electricity your lights use is to switch to LED lights which use 60–80% less electricity than conventional incandescent lighting.
- Wash laundry in cold water. Your washing machine needs energy to heat up water for washing. By washing your laundry in cold water your machines would not need that extra amount of electricity to heat up the water. Make sure that your washing machine is full with every wash to ensure you are maximising the amount of washing per load.
- Hang your laundry dry. Tumble dryers are big consumers of electricity. Hanging your clothes on a washing line as a pose to using the tumble dryer can save you considerable amounts of electricity.
- Boil only the required amount of water. If you use an electric kettle to boil water for tea and coffee, make sure that only the required amount of water is in the kettle before you boil it. The more water you need to heat, the more electricity you will need to heat it.
- Geyser management. It is well known that geysers are the biggest consumer of electricity in households. Converting to a solar geyser you can reduce your geysers electricity usage by up to 70%. This alone can save you up to 25% on your monthly electricity bill.
These simple yet effective tips can help you save on your monthly electricity needs. It may take some getting used to, but once you start noticing the benefits you will never look back. The more conscious we all become to the amount of electricity we use in our households, the greater the benefit will be to our planet. Until the time when we can fully depend on renewable energy sources, contribute to our collective effort of preserving natural resources and slowing down the effect of global warming.