The price of energy carriers is growing regularly, so the question of how to save electricity at home is becoming more and more relevant. It should be noted that if ten or fifteen years ago the average family of three did not particularly think about this, since the cost of public services did not consume most of the budget, now the situation has changed dramatically.
At the same time, using all modern energy-saving possibilities, it is not necessary to use dim light, refuse to turn on the necessary devices and "rewind" meter readings, which threatens violators with impressive fines. It is important to simply recognize and take for granted the need to save money and adhere to this principle in a way that is very accessible to each of us.
Today on the agenda - how and how much you can save on electricity. We all sometimes ask ourselves the question - "Am I paying too much for light (or electricity)? Is it possible to reduce these payments in some way? " But, as a rule, the subject does not go beyond conversations. But in fact, not everything is so scary and difficult. Try applying the rules outlined below (or at least some of them) and you will immediately notice the difference.
There are two ways to reduce electric bills:
- change our behavior a little
- we use modern energy saving technologies
In the first case, everything will depend only on us, that is, compliance with certain rules will reduce energy costs. The second method involves investing in the purchase of equipment and devices that can significantly reduce electricity consumption. But . . . . . having invested once, you can relax, the technique will do everything for you. And in most cases, the costs are paid within a year.
If we turn to statistics, the approximate costs in an average apartment for electricity are distributed as follows:
- 25% - electric stove, kettle, microwave and other kitchen utensils
- 21% - refrigerator
- 20% - lighting
- 9% - washing machine, dishwasher
- 11% TV, computer
- 14% - others
Using this data, you can roughly calculate how much and where you can start saving. Before starting, I advise you to write down how much energy you consume per month. Whereby? This will allow you to understand how much you actually save by applying certain methods. The result will be visible immediately and this will give you an added incentive.
Let's start saving energy:
Turn off the light when you leave
Everyone knows the expression, but . . . . . for some reason we don't use it at home. In vain, this is the easiest and most affordable way to save energy. Make it a rule to turn off the lights when leaving the room. The courtroom can also be assigned as a working TV. These "excesses" cost us about 30% of all lighting costs.
Energy saving lamps
Old incandescent lamps consumed 100 watts, saving energy - 20 watts. Savings in energy consumption by 5 times. Now popular LED lamps with a power of 5 watts. Of course they are more expensive than both, but with the same brightness of lighting, they consume MUCH less energy and last longer. Don't be stingy and buy. The main thing is to choose those that have a great guarantee - about 2 years. Within a year, LED bulbs pay off in full force.
more natural light
Rooms with white or light-colored wallpaper are lighter (sorry for the pun) as they reflect 90% of the light. For example, dark tones (closer to black) absorb up to 90% of the light that hits them. Keep windows and lamps clean. Not very clean, dusty, they are able to retain up to 30% of light. Don't fill the windowsill with flowers and other nonsense. Position your workspace near a window. If you don't have enough light, use a low-wattage table lamp.
Multi-tariff meters (day-night)
The advantage is that many devices are always on (refrigerator) or in sleep mode (computers, TV, etc. ). Thus, at night, the cost of energy consumption will decrease. If you shift some energy-intensive operations to the night (washing, cooking, ironing), the savings will become even more noticeable.
Turn off all appliances
First of all, it is equipment that works in standby mode: a computer, a TV, a microwave oven. air conditioning, water heater and many others. Count how many hours (or even minutes) a day you use this or that device. Microwave for 15 minutes, TV - say 2-3 hours, etc.
It turns out that in standby mode the devices work almost 24 hours a day - 20-23 hours. And all this time they are slowly "stealing" energy from us and therefore money. Each individual, of course, does not consume much, but ingests in quantity. For a year, standby costs us about 3, 000 rubles.
Few people know, but many appliances still consume energy even when turned off, but not removed from the network: hair dryer, cell phone charger.
smart technology
Use devices with energy class A (so the most energy consuming is class G). The difference in power consumption, even between modern models, can vary significantly. What can we say about outdated equipment (originally from the 90s and older). The difference in power consumption may differ, no not sometimes. Dozens of times!
Many models have an autosave mode. For example, in washing machines and dishwashers, depending on the workload, the system uses the optimal amount of water and energy, thus reducing consumption by 30-40 percent. If you still don't plan on switching gear, we'll save on what we have.
Home appliances
Fridge
Proper installation away from direct sunlight, central heating and stoves will save 20-30%. Additional measures: leave a space between the refrigerator and the wall for free air circulation. Defrost more often - the more ice, the greater the energy consumption. No hot food in the fridge. Always cover all liquid dishes (soups, jams). Remember, higher humidity equals higher energy consumption.
Washing and dishwasher
- Only work at full load.
- In fast and economical washing mode.
- Low temperature washing (washing) (where high temperature washing is not necessary)
cooking
- If you have gas in your apartment, you're in luck. It is several times more economical than electricity.
- Boil with the lid closed.
- Always boil water only as needed.
- Pre-poured water for cooking in the pot itself warms up to room temperature and the stove needs less energy to heat it up further and boil it.
- Residual heat. Turn off the stove 10-20 minutes before the end of cooking. The cooked dish itself will reach the desired condition.
- Warm the dish in the microwave at a time on a large plate - then you can divide it into portions for everyone.
iron clothes
- Clothes that are too dry and too dry are an increase in energy consumption. We used the golden mean.
- Unplug the iron 5-10 minutes before the end of ironing. We iron in residual heat.
- Use an iron with an auto-off function.
Heating
Up to 50% of heat loss in an apartment occurs through windows and doors. Our actions are plastic windows (reduce heat consumption by 80% in one go), or a more economical option - we close all cracks in windows and doors (we use seals). If the house is cold (not cold), do not rush to immediately turn on the heater - sometimes it is enough to wear something warmer from the clothes.
As you can see, it's not that difficult to start saving on electricity. You can easily save 30-50%, if you get a little confused, you can usually reduce payments by 2-2. 5 times. The main thing is to activate the "energy saving" mode in your head. You will immediately notice that payments will decrease. Good luck with all your savings.