Energy Saving Tips

Making heat 
It costs alot of money to create heat using electricity. For example, kettles are normally rated at 3 kilowatts (kW). In an hour this kettle would use 3 kilowatt hours (kWh). Your electricity is priced in kilowatt hours, eg at 12p per kWh. So run for an hour your kettle will cost 36p. The more water there is in the kettle the longer it takes to boil, so put in the minimum you need.

Examples of other products are:
  • A 2000w hairdryer will cost 24p per hour
  • A 10kw electric shower will cost £1.20 per hour.

These figures may not look much, but if you have a 10 min shower and spend 10 mins drying your hair every day this will cost you almost £100 per year. Cut the shower to 5 mins and it will reduce your cost to about £50.

Energy consumption averages
The average home uses electricity in the following proportions (excluding space heating):
  • Kitchen - cooking and cooling - 35%
  • Kitchen - washing and cleaning - 15%
  • Living room - entertainment - 20%
  • Living room - computing & telephony - 5%
  • Lighting - 15%
  • Other - 10% 
Domestic applicances will have an "Energy Rating". Generally an "A" rated product will have the lowest running costs.  

Cooking
Nothing new as to what you should do to cut costs here:.
  • Microwaves are often more efficient
  • Lids on saucepans
  • Keep the oven door securely shut when it the oven is on

 

Cooling
It takes alot of energy to keep a fridge and freezer running as these are generally working all the time. In fact, your fridge-freezer is probably the biggest single consumer of energy in your home.

  • Don't leave the fridge or freezer door open
  • Put a thermometer in your fridge - it should be about +3 celsius. Adjust the settings so that it is not too high or low. The best time to set it is first thing in the morning, ie after it has been closed overnight.
  • Freezers should be about -18 celsius
  • Don't put warm food into the fridge (this is NHS advice). It can raise the temperature of the fridge which encourages bacteria growth in other food and it will also make the fridge work harder to cool down, using more energy.

Washing and cleaning
A tumble dryer will cost around 25p per load, but could be as high as 49p for a "C" rated.

A washing machine will cost (on the more efficient cycles) around 10p per load, but could be as high as 20p for a "C" rated machine. 

A recent Energy Saving Trust report found that the average household with a washing machine and tumble dryer spends around £81 keeping their clothes clean. If they only own a washing machine this cost falls to £24.  

Living room, lighting
No surprises here: if you're not using it, turn it off.