Main > Household > Power-saving
Ceiling insulation is a great way to save on power bills, and has no ongoing costs.
[guest]
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Appliances
Know the cost of running your appliances: The cost of running an appliance can be calculated using the following formula:
Cost = (watts/1000) x hours x cost per kilowatt-hour.
The cost per kilowatt-hour can usually be found on your electricity bill. There are several different ways to find out how many watts your appliance uses:- Look at the box: a 100 watt bulb uses 100 watts. Or,
- You can use a mains power meter to measure how much each appliance uses. Or,
- You can calculate how many watts an appliance uses: Amps x voltage = watts (In North America the voltage is 120; elsewhere it is probably 220 to 240 volts)
thesource (378)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Appliances
Computer power savings:
Typical power usages are:
Active: 130 - 300 watts
Idling: 90 - 180 watts
Sleep mode (S1): 60-100 watts
Sleep mode (S3): 10 watts
Hibernate: 9 watts
Off: 9 watts
Unplugged: 0 watts
You may need to go to your BIOS settings on startup and set the Suspend type to S3 (Many systems use S1 by default)
An 80+ rated power supply (better than 80% efficiency) will save power.
thesource (378)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Put a lid on it: When you're in the kitchen, there are lots of small things you can do that can help make a difference. Saucepans with lids on heat much quicker, using less energy in the process. The other thing you might not have thought of is to keep your freezer full. It takes less energy to keep a full freezer cold than an empty one.
myxlfidian (150)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Bubble wrap applied to the inside of your windows will keep your home warm in winter, or cool in summer. Cut a sheet of bubble-wrap to the size of your window. Spray the inside of the window with a fine spray of water, then press the bubble wrap onto the window, sticking it to the window. This will decrease your electricity usage.
Kevin Solway (173)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Three biggest ways to save on power:
1) Rent a small one-bedroom unit. It's less lights, less cooling and heating. But you need a door between the two rooms to reduce heat and cool air loss. One bonus is you only need two split system airconditioners to cool and heat the entire appartment.
2) Share that same unit with someone and split the bill. That person will probably have to be your partner though because it would be far too crowded to have a two bedroom situation. You will always pay around 30-40% less on utilities and phone when you share.
3) Be sure to rent a unit with a gas stove and relatively small or narrow refrigerator.
myxlfidian (150)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Stop drafts: If you have an older house you can save money on your heating bills by blocking up unused chimneys. Plastic foam is the best but you can use old clothes.
[guest]
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Appliances
LCD Monitors: use about 1/3 the power of CRT monitors (or TVs). LCD monitors also use about 30% less power than plasma screens.
[guest]
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Hot drinks for one: If you are usually boiling a kettle only for one person, then get a really small kettle. It is wasteful to boil the extra water unnecessarily. Another solution is to fill a vacuum flask with boiling water and use that for your hot drinks throughout the day.
Kevin Solway (173)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
A mains power meter, which is not very expensive, can plug into a wall socket and tell you how much power your appliances are using — even when they are turned off. Once you know which appliances are draining the most power you will be better informed about whether to switch them off at the wall, or upgrade them.
thesource (378)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Appliances
CRT monitors and televisions use less power if you turn down the brightness.
thesource (378)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Space heating
Wearing a bulky parka indoors might make you look and feel like a Michelin man, but you'll be warmer and wealthier. If it bothers you merely to look fat, then you need new friends.
kellyjones00 (593)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Space heating
An old-fashioned way of heating your bedroom is to sleep in a four-poster bed with heavy curtains and ceiling material, or in a large enclosed box.
kellyjones00 (593)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Space heating
If your lifestyle is sedentary, your body heat will be lower from slower blood circulation. Consider using a ceiled cubicle, to heat you more efficiently. Also, move about more often.
kellyjones00 (593)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Appliances
In hot climates, use ceiling fans instead of an air conditioner. Or if you have to use air conditioning, have it in just in the room where you spend most of your time, instead of a central air conditioner which cools the entire building.
thesource (378)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Appliances
Split System Airconditioners with Inverters: Although an installed pair of these units will set you back quite a deal of money, they have many advantages. Used with roof insulation, you can run them on the most economical setting and still have effective cooling and heating (otherwise you pay a lot more on your quarterly electricity bill). Also, for summer, you save on cold water (when you buy spring water), ceiling fan power usage, greater fridge usage, more lukewarm showers to cool down and more washing machine usage due to sweaty clothes. Also you don't have to get out of the house (i.e. drive and spend money outside the house) so much because its cooler inside than out. In winter you eat less and have less hot showers because the heating prevents your core temperature from dropping.
The benefit of inverters is that they are quiet enough to have in units without disturbing neighbouring tennants, and their power usage is far less than standard spilt systems.
Look on eBay for licenced split system installers and you can save huge amounts on installation.
thesource (378)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Bright ideas: Every time you change a lightbulb from now on, make sure you change it with a compact fluorescent lightbulb. Not only do they use about 75% less energy than a standard bulb, but they'll last 6 times longer. Easy.
myxlfidian (150)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Block door-floor-gap draughts: Make a "sausage dog" to sit along the gap. A cheap version: pour cups of rice into the bottom of a large garbage bag, roll it up, and wind gaffer-tape around the sausage to prevent the bag tearing.
kellyjones00 (593)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Appliances
Washing machines: The major cost with washing machines is the cost of heating the water. If your clothes are not very dirty then try using a warm or even a cold water wash and rinse, instead of using hot water. Front-loading washing machines tend to use less water and therefore cost less to run.
thesource (378)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
Very dry air will not hold heat for very long. Use a humidifier to increase the humidity to around 55%. This will hold the heat for longer, reducing your heating costs.
Kevin Solway (173)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving
A ceiling fan, in winter, on slow, in reverse (blowing air towards the ceiling), can distribute the warm air that collects near the ceiling evenly throughout the room.
Kevin Solway (173)
|
|
|
Main > Household > Power-saving > Space heating > Woodfire heating
Fix a smoky woodfire:
- Only use dry wood, preferably hardwood.
- The flue outlet from the woodfire should become quickly vertical with no more than one 45° bend. If the flue is within three metres of the building ridge, then the flue needs to end above the ridge.
- Increase air pressure at the woodfire inlet, not at the exhaust side. E.g. open a window or create holes in the wall opposite the air inlet.
- Eliminate any holes in the flue or exhaust, apart from the main outlet and the top of the flue.
- Preheat the flue.
- Raise the fire-bed onto a metal grate and direct air into the space underneath the fire.
- Ensure the opening for air flowing into the fire is larger than the flue outlet for exhausted air. Experiment with the ratio.
kellyjones00 (593)
|
|
|
