Looking for ways to save electricity bills at home? Here’s how to save electricity bills that aren’t just easy on the pocket, but are great for mother earth too!
Do you dread the day your electricity bill arrives in your mail? Do you start searching for the calculator on your phone or go straight to your bank’s app to see if you’ve got to re-budget next month’s affairs because of a crazy number printed on that bill? We’ve all been there…
Aside from energy-saving heater, taking a shorter shower and buying energy-efficient products, we’ve got here some simple tips and tricks and hacks that’ll save electricity, get your mood up and mother nature dancing from side to side!
1. Opt for LED bulbs
This one’s an electric power saver. But don’t take our word for it, just breathe in these wonderful numbers:
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- LED lights are up to 80% more efficient than other lights (like Fluorescent)
- Only 5% of the energy is lost as heat, 95% is converted into light (Fluorescent lights have the opposite effect – 95% heat and 5% energy)
- LED lights use less power – an 84 watt Fluorescent light can be replaced with a 36 watt LED light!)
- They last up to — wait for it — six times longer than traditional lights!
Conclusions:
One: Fluorescent lights are the devil’s spawn, clearly. Unless you’re using a compact fluorescent light (CFL), then it’s a whole different story. Unlike fluorescent light, the CFL is designed to reduce the amount of electricity used.
Two: Using LED lights won’t just give you more bang for buck, it reduces demand from power plants and decreases greenhouse gas emissions too!
2. Unplug or switch off when not in use
Did you know that a phone or laptop charger is still conducting electricity when it’s left plugged into your switched-on socket? This is the case 99% of the time. Now, not everything is an electricity vampire. Power strips, chargers and your smart TV that’s on “standby” continually draws power but electronic appliances like radios and table lamps are totally fine.
Nevertheless, it is good practice to always turn off and unplug all your appliances when they are not in use. Some individuals have found that putting this into practice saved them up to 50% on their electricity bill monthly!
Quick fix solution: It’s fine to leave them plugged in, but be absolutely sure that the main power point has been switched off and unplugged!
Read more: e-Waste management in Malaysia: Where and how to dispose of electronic and electrical appliances
3. Service your air-conditioner
It’s Malaysia. It’s the land of eternal summer. It’s hot. All. Year. Round. So it’s completely understandable that air-conds are kept on for obscenely long hours! But do yourself a favour and just have it regularly serviced. This will ensure that it’s running efficiently and in turn, your room or home will get colder faster, which means it’ll reduce your electricity use! Tada. Electricity saved.
Another way to save electricity and cash is to clean the filter yourself every few months. Cleaning or replacing blocked filters can reduce between 5% and 15% of your energy consumption so go on and YouTube that “how to” video ASAP.
4. Invest in a plug-in timer switch
Unlike the electricity-saving device that “claimed” to cut your energy bills by 30%, this one’s a better and more realistic alternative. If you have got a kid who is afraid of the dark (or if you’re afraid of the dark) and you can’t bear to switch off your small table lamp then here is your new best friend – the Plug-In Timer Switch — a power saver device that allows for quick and easy automation of electrical appliances. Get one (or more), set it up accordingly (if you’re going to sleep, and you’ve just turned your lamp on then set the timer to switch off in about an hour) – and BAM suddenly you’re being energy conscious! Look at you, saving energy, money and the world.
5. Tips for the washing machine
Here are some self-explanatory easy-to-follow instructions on how to keep cash in your wallet and our environment nice and livable just the way we like it:
Step 1: Collect a full load of laundry
Step 2: Pre-soak any heavily soiled pieces so you don’t need to do extra rounds
Step 3: Instead of hot water, use cold water if you have the option on your washing machine
Step 4: Use energy-saving features if your machine has it, like the “20-minute wash”
Read more: How to clean a washing machine in 6 steps
6. Switch to solar power
This may sound harder than it actually is, to be honest. Just log on to a shopping website and key in “solar”. There are solar-powered outdoor lights, water pumps for ponds and fountains, string lights and even power banks!
But wait, it gets better. If you’re willing to spend a little more and get actual solar panels that can generate electricity… You can sell your collected electricity to the grid to TNB as it’s part of their energy conservation initiative.
For real, this is happening in Malaysia, so put on your schooling hats and get down to doing a little research because this won’t just save electricity or your money – it will make you money: The Feed-In Tariff Malaysia Scheme
7. Set the right temperature for your fridge and freezer
We like to keep things in our refrigerator cold to keep the food inside fresh. But by doing so, you can end up using more energy and at the end of the month, you’ll be surprised at how high your energy bill goes up to. Keep the refrigerator temperature at or below 4° C to let it work at peak efficiency and reduce the amount of electricity spent. As for the freezer, the recommended temperature is 0° C.
It doesn’t take much to save electricity at home. By doing all of the above, you’ll notice that the electricity bill in the following month will be reduced! By our powers combined, we got this, gang!