To understand how to save energy in an apartment, you need to be prepared for an integrated approach. Just pressing the button to access the minimum accounts will not work. And living without light is somehow not comfortable at all.
The importance of energy saving
While energy sources meant mere pennies, no one thought about the need to save energy. But since then, as payrolls have risen sharply, the public has shown considerable interest in ways to save electricity and other resources. Villagers are worried about how to save electricity in a private house, while city dwellers are looking for information on how to save energy in an apartment.
Raising tariffs is entirely justified because the planet is rapidly depleting its depletable energy resources and the cost of producing them is, on the contrary, increasing. Unfortunately, the salaries of ordinary people in Hungary do not show such a frantic increase, so there is no other way out than to look for efficient solutions to save electricity.
There is another reason for the savings - the huge loads on the transformer substations. Every year, more and more electrical appliances appear in people’s homes. Of course, electrical wiring and substations may not be resistant, they need to be repaired or replaced with stronger ones.
In addition, electricity savings reduce emissions of processed products into the atmosphere and water sources. Resource-saving people make a modest contribution to preserving rivers, lakes, and forests, and contribute to preserving the health of the nation.
Effective and legal methods of saving
Reducing demand
How can you save energy at home without appliances and additional investment? It's very simple. All you have to do is think about how much light we need and use the following tips from experienced innovators:
- Try using less electric light. This does not mean a return to primitive times when the activities of life took place only in daylight. You can only try to do all the things that require strong lighting during the day, and in the evening you can limit yourself to just one lamp to illuminate the rest of the work.
- By studying the issue of saving light in the apartment, you should know that the amount of lighting depends on the cleanliness of the luminaires. If the lampshade in the kitchen is covered with a "century-old" layer of grease and dust, you should not expect strong light from it. And if the ceiling is clean, light will penetrate it perfectly, which means you can use a smaller light bulb.
- The windows also need to be washed more often, as this will allow the daytime hours to last a little longer and allow you to turn on the power later.
- In multiple incandescent chandeliers, you can turn on not one at a time, but one or two. For table work, use a table lamp in combination with low overhead lighting.
- A very useful invention is the dimmer. This allows you to adjust the illumination level of each luminaire.
- Replace standard bulbs with energy-efficient models. Recently, many have begun to worry about the question: are LED lights energy efficient? Experts are convinced that the future belongs to LED lamps, as they consume little energy, emitting a fair amount of light.
- Turn off the lights when you leave the room. This is of course quite difficult when there are children in the house who are very difficult to get used to in such a simple way of saving.
Use of multiple tariff meters
Electricity can be supplied differently at different times of the day. This is due to the fact that it is consumed in large quantities during the day and at night the power plants operate almost idle. How can you save energy with a meter that calculates the energy consumed during the day at the usual price and allows you to pay 30% less at night? If the house has appliances used around the clock (refrigerator, electric heating, etc. ), then a multi-tariff meter will help reduce your electricity bill. Washing can be started at night and at the same time the performance of the heaters can be increased so that they can be switched off completely during the day.
Rational use of technology
Every home has devices that never unplug from outlets. But not everyone knows that even in "sleep" mode, they draw electricity. Each device has very little such supporting power, but they reach an impressive amount in a month. To prevent unnecessary waste, it is sufficient to unplug all devices from their sockets "during their idle time".
Note: The large number of old, low-quality wires, as well as extension cords and various T-shirts, will also increase your home's electricity consumption.
Technical innovations
People who dream of learning how to properly save electricity in an apartment should appreciate all their household appliances. After all, old types of refrigerators and TVs consume a lot of energy, twice as much as modern models. Gradually try to replace all obsolete appliances with low-power models. Labels usually indicate the degree of economy, with Class A being the most profitable.
More recently, more economical energy consumption classes have emerged, such as A +, A ++.
Smart devices have now begun to go on sale, being able to independently calculate the amount of detergent or detergent based on the weight of the dishes or bedding, and regulate water consumption. Refrigerators can enter a super economical mode during owners ’holidays.
Refrigerator
Probably already millions of articles have been written about the proper installation of the refrigerator and thousands of videos have been shot, but our people still stubbornly continue to stubbornly make this unit near the heater, stove and sunny side. But in this case, the refrigerator heats up quickly from nearby heat sources and consumes much more electricity. We also recommend that you leave some space between the refrigerator and the wall to ensure the necessary airflow.
It is also desirable that the room where the refrigerator is located be cool. Remember to defrost the cooling unit as needed and rid it of accumulated ice, making it easier to operate the appliance and reducing its "energy cravings". Be careful not to damage the door.
If you’re thinking about how to reduce your energy bills, don’t "swing" the largest and most voluminous model when buying a new refrigerator if 2-3 people live in the house all the time. After all, such a "colossus" consumes a lot of energy.
Vacuum cleaner
To prevent the vacuum cleaner from starting to draw more energy than it needs from the mains, it must be cleaned regularly and in time of accumulated dust layers, because as it is full, it consumes 15-20% more. And don’t even turn the vacuum cleaner on / off too often - it spends most of its energy on these operations.
Electric oven
An electric stove is a very energy consuming device. You can reduce the following costs by following these recommendations:
- If the recipe for the food does not indicate that the oven needs to be preheated the moment the pan is inserted, do not turn it on in advance.
- Turn off the hob 5-10 minutes before the end of the cooking time. There will be enough residual heat for cooking.
- Containers should always be covered with a lid.
- When boiling eggs and vegetables, just add enough water to cover the food.
- It is important to use good flat bottom pans. Ideal for electric stoves - thick-bottomed pots and pans.
- To boil water for tea or coffee, use an electric kettle instead of a stove, as this will consume much less energy for this process.
- For a quick meal, use a microwave or multicooker, not an oven.
Washer
It’s very hard to imagine modern life without a washing machine, but it also "eats" a lot of electricity - about 15% of total consumption. To save money, use these tricks:
- Washing in Fast and Economical ways
- Do not wash 2-3 items at a time, but undermine the laundry until it is completely loaded. But you can't overload the car either.
- Use low temperature settings for normal washing.
Air conditioners
To prevent the air conditioner from using too much energy, operate it properly:
- Set the temperature to the optimum temperature, just enough to cool down and not freeze the room.
- Do not operate the air conditioner with the windows or doors open.
- When buying an air conditioner, be sure to calculate the area of the room where you will be cooling down. Do not take too much power into a small room as this will waste power.
- Be sure to clean the air conditioner fans, filters, and grilles so you don’t have to run at high speeds.
Heaters
In the fall, winter, and early spring, we often need to procure a variety of heaters from our home bins. After all, the heating is often turned on and off for a very long time. So we use energy consuming radiators, although such heat is very expensive.
To reduce the need for heaters, provide all possible insulation, even in relatively warm weather: windows, walls, floors, etc. It is best to replace old windows with plastic. And if that’s not possible, at least try to seal all the cracks and microcracks in the frames and next to the glass. Up to 50% of the heat is removed through them. Do the same with the front doors.
If the heating is already on and the batteries are still cooling, you should call a master who will check if there is water in them.
Use of solar energy
Solar energy has long been actively used in many countries with warm climates. Some of them managed to completely abandon all other sources. The technology is very attractive, but without government support, it often turns out to be an overwhelming task for individual households, as solar panels and other structural elements are very expensive and pay for themselves over many years.
In order to know how to save energy with the help of the sun, it is advisable to read special literature and determine the necessary characteristics of the solar cell at the project stage. Many try to make the whole structure on their own, but don’t take into account all the nuances and difficulties, so they often fail.
Wind energy
Home wind turbines in regions with high air mass activity can significantly reduce electricity costs, and if there is a special meter, they can also make money on the electricity produced. But such devices as well as solar panels cost a lot of money and require the installation of professionals.
Occasionally, the owners of such power plants miscalculate the power of wind currents, leading to forced shutdowns of expensive equipment.
Smart home system
To automate the operation of all the devices in the house, special equipment and a computer program are used, which also regulates the level of energy consumption. Sensors are placed in the house that take readings and determine the amount of electricity used in each room. The computer analyzes and suggests solutions to optimize power consumption.
The system will not work on its own, it must be programmed for a specific house or apartment. But when all the occupants of the house are scattered about their affairs in the morning, the system turns off the air conditioning or lights in the kitchen, closes the door, or starts washing.
Installing motion sensors
Instead of buying a rather expensive "Smart Home" system, you can thrive on "little blood" and install motion sensors in your rooms. After all, we often forget to turn off the lights when we leave the house or fall asleep with the light. But if the rooms are equipped with motion sensors, they will turn off the lights themselves. They can be set so that the light goes out only 5-10 minutes after the person has left the room. After all, children are constantly running back and forth, and adults can move around the house very quickly.
Such a sensor is very useful in the hallway where the light is only needed to pass to another room. To avoid turning the switch all the time or keeping the lamp on in the hallway, place the sensor and live comfortably. Energy-saving lamps with built-in motion sensors are now for sale.
Saving electricity is not too difficult, you just have to tune in and agree with every member of the household. The main obstacle is ourselves and our beliefs. As soon as he realizes the need to save, it immediately becomes clear that it has happened that the light bills are small.