Saving and rational use of electricity at home

Many people are concerned about the question: how to save energy at home. This can be done in different ways:

  • rationally using natural lighting and insulating the house;
  • buying new electrical appliances and modern technical devices;
  • giving up some household appliances, doing the work by hand.

Why conserve electricity?

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If saving money on electricity bills is not a strong incentive for you, then look at the problem differently. Electricity is produced by thermal power plants, which emit many harmful substances into the atmosphere every day, burning natural fuels: coal, oil and gas. Environmental pollution leads to global warming and, as a result, to natural disasters. Efficient use of electricity will help preserve nature. If every person consciously treats environmental problems, we can save the planet for our children. We bring to your attention the best ways to effectively save energy in everyday life.

Lighting in the house - ways to save energy

Lighting costs when using incandescent bulbs are about a third of all electricity costs.

How to reduce energy consumption using natural lighting

Try to make the most of natural light during the day: part curtains, pull up blinds. Light sheer curtains will make your home brighter and more comfortable. Natural light does not spoil your eyesight and helps to cope with bad moods, so let it in your home. Make the most of the daylight hours. Reschedule some activities from late evening into the morning to avoid using artificial lighting.

Place the sofa and work table near the window. This way you can read without an additional light source. You can equip a seating area on the glazed balcony. Try not to obstruct the windows with tall houseplants. There should be no tree branches outside the window either.

If you are renovating or building a house, then plan ahead for the location of large windows, light guides, glass roofs. Choose the right doors for your premises. For example, through glass inserts in doors, light can enter a dark corridor.

How to efficiently save electricity by zoning rooms

Divide the space into zones with different lighting intensities. Use different light sources in your apartment: chandeliers, table lamps, sconces, bedside lamps. Arrange them according to your light needs. For example, the hall can accommodate:

  • a large chandelier with several bulbs, the light in which is controlled by a two-button switch;
  • a floor lamp near the reading chair;
  • desk lamp with daylight source on the desktop.

It is more effective to add light to the desired area than to turn on bright general lighting. Just do not replace the main lighting with additional light sources, as this can damage your eyesight. The room should not be dim; dim light can negatively affect your health: lead to migraines and depression. Let's take a look at how you can save electricity and keep your home brightly lit by choosing the right bulbs.

What bulbs to use for lighting to reduce energy costs

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If you use conventional incandescent bulbs, see where in the apartment they can be replaced with less powerful ones. Better yet, replace this type of light bulb with a more modern one.

Energy-saving lamps consume several times less electricity than their predecessors. They are more expensive but have a long service life. The invested funds will pay off within a year.

Types of energy saving bulbs:

  1. Mercury bulbs. They consume 4 times less energy than incandescent bulbs. The only drawback is that used lamps must be properly disposed of.
  2. LED bulbs. They appeared on the market recently, but have already established themselves as reliable and economical. They serve even longer than mercury ones and do not contain harmful substances. The disadvantages of these lamps include their high cost.

How to get rid of the bad habit of not extinguishing the light

when leaving, turn off the light!

The easiest way to avoid wasting electricity is to leave the lights on when you leave the room. The habit of not turning off the electricity often leads to the fact that the light bulb burns even when the person leaves for work. You can combat this with reminder notes glued to the front doors. The inscription can be like this: "Before leaving, turn off the light!", "Check the light, water, iron, gas!". It is very convenient if there is a switch near the door with which you can de-energize all the lights in the house.

How can you save on lighting at home using new technologies

  1. Motion sensors that turn on light bulbs when a person appears;
  2. Light sensors that do not allow to turn on artificial lighting during the day;
  3. A timer switch that lights up a light bulb for a specified time;
  4. Programs that ignite electricity by zone, depending on the level of illumination and time of day.
  5. Remote control panels allow you to turn off the light from anywhere in the room.
  6. Switches, turning which, you can adjust the brightness of the lighting.
  7. Light bulbs that store electricity during the day.

Electricity and heat in the house. How can you reduce your electricity consumption?

electric heater

With the onset of cold weather, people increasingly turn on electric heaters. Insulating the house will help keep it at a comfortable temperature before turning on the central heating, without using electrical appliances.

Start warming rooms by replacing old windows with modern plastic structures with double-glazed windows. If this is not possible, then use mounting tape to insulate window and door openings. Pasting windows for the winter will eliminate heat loss and drafts.

Private home owners should take care of good thermal insulation of the outer walls and roof. If the house is well insulated, it will help keep the room warm during the cold season. In hot summer weather, it will be cool in such a house, so you can not turn on the air conditioner. Thus, house insulation helps to save energy both in winter and summer.

Maintain the room at an optimal temperature. It should not exceed 21 degrees. Do not turn on the heater if the temperature has not dropped below this mark. So you will not dry out the air in the room and, as a result, you will be less sick with ARVI. It is better to dress a little warmer if at this air temperature you are not comfortable in the room.

How to save electricity in an apartment using electrical appliances

First, let's figure out which electrical appliances consume the most energy. These data are very approximate, but they allow you to find out which equipment most affects the amount of electricity spent per month.

DeviceWorking time, hours / daykW / h per day
TV30.5
computer124
iron21
microwave oven11
multicooker, double boiler61
hood81
oil heater126
fan heater25
hair dryer10.5
electric stove43
water heater 60-70 liters11
Dishwasher12
Washer22
refrigerator241
freezer241.2
electric kettle11
incandescent lamp, 100W80.8

Unplug equipment you are not using

Leaving appliance plugs plugged in is wasting electricity. The technician in standby mode continues to use it. When leaving home, disconnect from the network:

  • teapot;
  • coffee maker;
  • TV;
  • computer;
  • sound speakers;
  • phone chargers;
  • hairdryer;
  • food processor and other appliances.

This way you will not only save energy, but also protect your equipment from power surges and short circuits that can lead to a fire. Your efforts will pay off at the end of the month with significant savings in money.

Replace old equipment with new models with high energy efficiency class

Previously, manufacturers did not set themselves the goal of producing household appliances that would save energy. Today the situation has changed dramatically, energy consumption by technology continues to decline. The appliances with the lowest electricity consumption are among the best in their class. They are also expensive, but the money invested in them pays off in a couple of years. Therefore, it makes sense to replace large household appliances with new models. First of all, it is advisable to change the refrigerator and washing machine. For maximum energy savings, choose a Class A appliance whenever possible.

Use electrical appliances wisely

  • Some simple rules can help you reduce your electricity bill.
  • Load the dishwasher completely instead of washing the dishes in small batches.
  • Make sure that the refrigerator door is tightly closed and do not keep it open for a long time.
  • When cooking in an electric oven, do not open the door too often to reduce the heat inside the oven. Additional electricity will be needed to restore the previous temperature.
  • Set aside one day to do your laundry. This way, you can fully load the washing machine and save money by skipping the daily wash.
  • Don't heat a full kettle if you only need one cup of boiling water.

Do not use electrical appliances unnecessarily

Nowadays advertising forces people to buy a lot of household appliances. Some of them really make homework easier, while others are actually completely unnecessary for us. You can cook dinner for two every day without the help of a food processor. But it will come in handy when you make preparations for the winter.

You can use a thermos instead of a yogurt maker. It also maintains a constant milk temperature well. And instead of an electric air freshener, it is useful to use aromatic oil or simply ventilate the room more often.

Instead of using an electric clothes dryer, you can hang your laundry on the balcony.

If the house has a gas stove, then it is better to replace the electric kettle with an ordinary one. If you are afraid that you will forget to turn it off, then buy a kettle with a whistle.

There are many such examples. After all, our parents used to do housework without the help of sophisticated equipment. Think about what devices you can do without.

How to save electricity when heating water

electric water heater

The boiler not only heats the water, but also maintains its temperature at the same level all day.If you do not control the consumption of hot water, then you will have to pay a significant amount for heating it at the end of the month.

How to save hot water:

  1. Do not set too high a temperature on the boiler, as this can reduce the energy consumption for heating water during the day.
  2. Good thermal insulation of the boiler will help keep the water hot for a long time without additional heating.
  3. If you take a shower, instead of a bath, you can reduce your water consumption by three times. This is provided that you will spend no more than 20 minutes in the shower.
  4. It is more economical to wash the dishes once a day. But if you don't like clutter, then wash the plates with hot water in a bowl, and then rinse them with cold running water.

Search for alternative energy sources

In a private house, solar panels can be used as an alternative source of energy. When installing them, you need to take into account the climate of the area and the number of sunny days per year. In the southern regions of the country, solar panels are successfully used in large houses. The electricity stored in batteries connected to solar panels can be used to light a house and heat water.

Output

Energy saving techniques shouldn't be inconvenient for you. As you can see, there are many ways to avoid wasting electricity. Efficient use of electricity will not limit your freedom, because you can take care of nature and its resources and at the same time enjoy the achievements of progress. As a bonus for reduced energy consumption, you will receive a significant reduction in utility bills at the end of the month.

We advise you to read:

Economical electric heaters - myth or reality?