Simple tips to reduce your power bill

Kitchen

• Your fridge compartment should be below 5˚C, and your freezer should be set between minus 15˚C and minus 18˚C. For every degree colder, your running costs can increase between 2-4%.
• Defrost your freezer regularly to improve efficiency.
• Running your dishwasher with a full load and clean the filter regularly.  
• When boiling your kettle, only boil the amount of water you need.  

Laundry

• If the sun is out, use your clothesline! If you do use the dryer, clean the lint filter after each load.
• Stick to the cold wash setting for most of your laundry.  

Bathroom

• Take shorter showers. An average shower uses 12 litres of water every minute, plus the power it takes to heat it.  

Study

• Set your computer’s screen saver to kick in sooner.  
• Switch printers, scanners and modems off at the wall when not in use.
• The bigger your computer screen, the more electricity it will use.  

Living

• Replace incandescent or halogen lights with energy-saving LED lights.
• Put on a jumper if you feel cold!  
• When heating, set your thermostat to between 18 and 20 degrees – each degree above 20 can add 10% to its running costs.  
• In summer, set the temperature to 25 or 26 degrees. Once again, every degree below 25 can add around 10% to its running costs.
• Use a lamp instead of lighting the whole room.  

Outdoors

• Light your paths for free with solar lights.  
• Use motion sensor lights outdoors and you won’t have to worry about leaving outdoor lights on.  

Potential savings at a glance:  

• Switching off the games console after use could save up to $175 per year.
• Swap 10 incandescent bulbs for fluorescents and save up to $220.
• Say goodbye to your 2nd fridge and save up to $230.
• Run your pool pump for 2 hours less a day in winter to save up to $145 a year.
• Using the clothesline once a week instead of using the dryer could save around $79 a year.
• Installing a water-efficient 4-star showerhead could save around $315 a year on water bills, there will also be savings on energy bills because less water will need to be heated.

‍