Eco Projects Easy Ways To Save Energy At Home

Date Published:

29/05/2008

Make Appliances Efficient

The average household wastes £37 a year*, simply by leaving appliances on standby. For our money, that's a good evening out, let alone a huge waste of energy. So what can you do with your appliances (and habits) to make them greener?

Don't Leave Appliances on Standby

You can't switch most electronic goods off just with the remote control - to turn off an appliance completely, use the power switch on the appliance itself or turn it off at the plug. Any appliance with a charger or an external power pack will still use power unless turned off at the plug (you can tell because the charger or power pack stays warm or may have a light on).

So what are we talking about here? TVs, DVDs, MP3s - all of those bad boys use lots of energy if left on standby. But it's not just the obvious things - did you switch off your mobile phone charger at the socket when you'd finished recharging your phone? If not, you're still using energy. Are your hair straighteners left on at the socket, too? What about the washing machine? Did you switch that off after you unloaded it?

Energy-Efficient Appliances

Of course, energy-efficient appliances will help save you a bundle in terms of energy and money. Look for the Energy Saving Recommended label, as these are among the top 20 per cent most efficient. Look, too, for European Union (EU) energy labels on fridges, freezers and washing machines, which make it easy to see how energy efficient an appliance is on a scale of A to G (where A is most efficient and G is least).

Want more info about eco-friendly appliances? Waterwise have more details.

Use Your Appliances Efficiently

So what else can you do to make your appliances more efficient? Try these easy tips:

1. Got a washer dryer? When possible dry your clothes outside or on a clothes rack instead, and if you do use the dryer, fill it each time, rather than putting on a number of small loads.

2. Running a washing machine or dishwasher? Washing clothes at 30 degrees saves energy - today's detergents wash just as well at low temperatures. Run washing machines and dishwashers less often, but with full loads - a half load setting uses more than half the energy and water of a full load.

3. Switching off and unplugging appliances at the wall when not in use will save the energy used by lights and displays. Cleaning filters regularly keeps appliances running efficiently.

4. Fridges and freezers obviously benefit from being defrosted regularly - and from having their doors open for as little time as possible. But size matters, too. Look for the smallest appliance for your needs to cut energy consumption - two different sized fridges can have the same efficiency rating (for example, a European Union (EU) energy label 'A'), but the smaller one will use less energy and cost less to run.

5. If you're shopping for a new oven, bear in mind that, generally, gas is a greener choice than electricity as it has lower climate change effects. The exceptions to this rule are microwaves (as they are more energy efficient than gas or electric ovens) and electric induction hobs, which match the energy efficiency of gas hobs.

6. Electric kettles use nearly a third of all the electricity an average household uses for cooking*, so only boiling as much water as you need can help save a lot of energy. Some kettles have unnecessary features that use up extra electricity, like lights or 'keep warm' functions - so try to avoid these when you're shopping, too.

Save More Money and Energy!

You can save further by finding out just how much energy your house uses - go to Act On CO2 to see how your house rates.

For more information about saving energy at home, go to the government's Greener Living and Environment Portal.

For more about green living, building, materials and just about anything you can think of, go to our eco pages.

And to check out Kevin McCloud's eco views, go to the Grand Designs section.

* Source: Directgov: Environment