Every cent counts these days and we are all looking for ways to streamline our monthly expenditure. It sounds a bit extreme but you should consider seriously monitoring your electricity consumption, there are more price increases expected in the future and you will do yourself a favour by getting on the ‘electricity saving bandwagon’ early.
Here are some great tips:
- Adjust your geyser temperature to about 55 degrees as this is closer to the temperature most people actually require to bath or do dishes. You will add less cold water and you will save money by not having the geyser heat up to an excessive temperature.
- Close the doors and windows when using a heater, fan or aircon as this will allow you to regulate the room temperature more effectively.( However if your heater is gas powered do take care when using them as they often require that the room be adequately ventilated to ensure safe use. Always check the manufacturers specifications.)
- Switch off any unnecessary lights or appliances as they waste money and electricity. Standby mode is apparently not good enough either so unplug them to be on the safe side.
- Skip the pre-wash cycle on your washing machine if your clothes are not that dirty. Then use the right temperature setting for the right clothes. Don’t wash things at 40 degrees if they require a cold wash, this will spare your clothes and your money.
- Limit the use of your tumbledryer where possible. Most clothes and fabrics do very well when merely hung out to dry. Heat generating appliances seem to use the most electricity so use them sparingly.
- Boil only the amount of water in the kettle that you will actually be needing. this should get your kettle to boil a bit faster and you will save electricity.
- Switch to energy saving light bulbs, they last longer and save electricity. (Some of these bulbs may contain chemicals so check the packaging for how to dispose of these bulbs safely when they eventually wear out.)
Hopefully these tips will help you save a bit of money now and make any major future transitions easier, an extreme example would be electricity rationing in residential areas. Be prepared and practised at saving electricity as we may need it more in the future.
