Thanks to the soaring summer temperatures, our homes and offices have become hot and uncomfortable. The unforgiving heat has made us seek air conditioning systems to help maintain a comfortable and pleasant home and office environment.
Although air conditioning london can help prevent allergies and heat strokes and increase the life of appliances, we can’t deny that they consume a lot of power and scorch up your electricity bill. Yet, with our ingenuity, we have come up with practical ways to save money on electricity.
But before we tell you ways to save electricity, we believe you should know a little about your energy bills.
Understanding your Energy Bill
Before we answer the question, ‘how to save money on energy bills?’ We believe you should know how the electricity bill is calculated?There is a lot of information on a typical energy bill that can be confusing for us.
The energy bills are calculated based on the number of energy units consumed. The energy company will work out your bill by subtracting the previous amount from the one shown on the meter. Your bill typically has:
- The last meter reading
- The amount of gas or electricity consumed within the billing period
- Plan name
- Meter number
- VAT Charges
- Price per Kilowatt
Tips on How To Save Electricity?
There are several ways in which you can save electric bills. You can make small incremental changes to your lifestyle, such as limiting the use of ACs or investing in redesigning your home, such as growing plants – either way, you will have a chance to reduce your electric bills.
But before we jump into long-term investments, we can try these sure-fire tips to reduce electric usage.
Turn off appliances when not in use, especially when it’s too hot outside.
The home appliances you use every day are energy-guzzlers that give off heat. It increases the room temperature and creates heat pockets around the house.
It is best to turn off devices when not in use, and don’t leave electrical appliances on standby to save electricity bills.
Additionally, use electrical appliances such as washing machines, ovens, dishwashers and dryers in the evening when the outdoor temperatures are low.
Turning off light bulbs, Television and other electrical appliances when not in use can save you hundreds of pounds each year on your electric bill and help cool down your home faster.
Draught-proof your doors and windows
Your house has several gaps or openings that allow heat and cold to escape. As the heat escapes through the chimney or the cracks around the windows or doors, you will be required to crank up the heat at home or reduce the temperature on the thermostat to cool down the place.
Draught-proofing is a good solution that helps you save heat or retain the cold while saving a few pounds off your monthly electricity bill.
If you are using air-con, we suggest you keep the blinds and curtains tightly closed during the day to save some money spent on cooling the house.
Switch to energy-efficient lights
Traditional incandescent lights are not exactly environment friendly. Nearly 90% of the heat consumed by incandescent lights go into producing heat, and the lights also give off much of the heat, unlike an LED that creates a very low level of heat. Switching from incandescent lights to LED is an excellent choice as they save energy, don’t require frequent replacement and waste less energy.
Save energy by using the washing machine carefully
By using your laundry machine more carefully, you can lower the electric bill of your home. Instead of running the washer at a higher temperature, go for the lower temperature cycle. Ensure you fill-up the laundry machine and not let the machine run on half load.
Whenever possible, avoid using the tumble dryer. The tumble drier, too, takes up a lot of energy. Dry the clothes on a rack or a clothesline.
Go for a Shower Instead of a bath.
Your water bills also take up a large chunk of the monthly energy consumption of a household. Going for a shower instead of a bath can save a lot of money from your water bills. An hour-long warm bath can do wonders to your body and soul, but if you want to keep your energy consumption to the minimum, a shower should be your choice.
Switch to Smart Devices
Smart devices help lower energy consumption significantly. Smart, automated devices can sense when an appliance is not in use and immediately turn itself off. Replace energy-intensive old models with modern energy-efficient appliances to reduce the electricity consumption in half.
Go for Solar-Powered Devices
When you want to know how to reduce electric usage, we suggest you try solar-powered devices. Using solar-powered devices or installing solar panels is an excellent alternative to electricity.
If you can power your entire house with solar panels, you can stay off the grid and reduce your dependence on electricity to power your appliances.
Be a Smart Cook
Become an intelligent cook by incorporating brilliant and simple hacks into your everyday cooking. Boil the kettle with just enough water you are going to use – don’t overfill.
Start cooking with the lid on to conserve energy and speed up the cooking process.
Get Control over your Thermostat
Raise the thermostat setting to the highest temperature you are comfortable with, but remember that the difference between the indoor and outdoor temperature should not be more than 8 degrees.
Try not to run the air conditioner throughout the night, especially if it’s been running the whole day. Keep the air con for a few hours at night, and set it to turn off for the next couple of hours automatically. Your room will maintain a cool temperature for a few hours with good insulation.
Fan and AC- the energy-saving combo
In addition to turning off the AC for a few hours during the night, keep the fan on to help circulate the cool air. If you have installed a low wall mount air con or a ducted air con, combine the benefits of the cool air with your fan. We think turning on your AC for a few hours at a time at night and turning it off for a few hours can help maintain a comfortable temperature at home while lowering the electric bills. If possible, place bowls of icy cold water in the room to help quickly reduce the temperature.
We understand that electricity bills take up a large portion of your monthly budget. While we don’t have the control over the soaring temperatures, and the changing weather conditions, we can certainly control the temperatures inside our houses effectively. These tips will help you lower your electric bill without disturbing the comfort of your home.
