Home Energy Saving Tips for a Cheaper, Greener Lifestyle

Here are some home energy saving tips which (if you follow them!) should save you money and make your household quite a bit greener too. Some (but hopefully not all) of these tips are a bit obvious, I know! The devil, as always is in the detail. As householders it is up to us to select what we can do practically. Some tips require a fair amount of vigilance by the householder. Fortunately, there are more and more useful gadgets which can help us to a leaner and greener energy profile.

I hope that by offering these savings tips collected together in one place on Greenfootsteps, you will find a resource of ideas from which you can draw the techniques which best suit your circumstances.

Here we go.

Home energy saving tips: Lighting and electricity

Stand-by

Many electrical devices and gadgets are set up to keep a small light burning to show that they are on or on stand-by. These small lights are thought to be responsible for up to a tenth of domestic power needs here in Britain. This seems an incredible amount of power to be generated just for appliances to say "Hey, I'm on"!

Britons are wasting around one million tonnes of carbon a year on from idle machines left on stand by. The University of Strathclyde has shown that each household in Britain loses around 525 Kws of energy to these devices each year. That's about more than £50 per year per household at 2008 prices. It's also a carbon dioxide burden that the atmosphere could well do without.See here for more on carbon dioxide and the environment: Becoming carbon neutral

If you are buying new electric gadgets, try to buy ones that either don't have these almost useless lights, or if you cannot bring yourself to do that, (or cannot find alternatives, which, unfortunately, is often difficult at present - though changes are now in the pipeline in 2008) then at least make sure that most of them are switched off at night.

This can quite quickly become part of the closing down the house at night routine. It only takes a few moments to run around switching off all the inessential power sockets. And it should save you noticeable amounts of cash too when the electricity bill plops onto the mat.

Now that global warming and climate chaos are becoming more widely recognised as facts there are plans to limit stand-by on appliances. In the future these devices may well switch themselves off after a set time. In the meantime, we need to do the necessary, and switch them off whenever possible.

Switch off!

Turning lights off is a good habit to develop, especially if you can get the offspring to co-operate! I used to come home sometimes to a house blazing with light as people moved though it, leaving lights on behind them as they went. Things are rather better now, though far from perfect.

It's definitely a good idea to implant this idea in your kids' minds at a very early age if you can.

Teenagers are generally a lot harder to re-educate than small children, so it's probably well worth trying to get your kids switching off lights on auto-pilot while they are still little.

Even with low-energy light bulbs it is generally worth switching off when you leave the room, unless it's just for a moment.

Picture above: low energy CFL light bulbs can now look almost like incandecent bulbs

Low-energy light bulbs

Low energy bulbs should save your household money over the year. They are coming down in price now and you can often buy bulk packs which are cheaper still. Here, in Britain the government is subsidising them at the moment.

Disconnect mobile phone chargers and other transformers when they are not actually being used

Home energy saving tips: Outdoor Lighting

Sensor lights

If you use an outdoor light regularly, have a sensor light installed and set it to stay on for only a shortish period for lighting your comings and goings. You can always wave your arms about to re-activate it!

If it is mainly for security lighting it is actually quite a good idea to have it on only fairly briefly - it will make it hard for any potential intruder to see when it goes out. (Meanwhile, you are in a position to switch off your indoor lights and peer out to see what's going on.)

Outdoor lights left on can have a big impact on your lighting bill - and on your carbon emissions. It is now possible to buy low energy outdoor lights (CFLs) and LEDs which are far more eco-friendly than halogen bulbs or incandescent ones.

Solar power

Solar powered garden lights are now widely available and no longer expensive. The light they emit is dim and depends upon there being a bit of reasonable light during the daytime, so they are less good in dull weather and in winter when light levels are low. The light given out is generally quite ok for picking out a well marked path.

Rechargeable lighting

Then there's re-chargeable torches and storm lanterns have a quite romantic appeal. Children enjoy lighting them and taking them through the garden as they cast such great shadows.

You can now buy torches with dynamos instead of batteries. You just press a lever or wind them up to generate light. These seem to be quite easy to use and effective. (I've had one for a few months now - I think it's great!)

You can also use old fashioned tricks like painting some largish stones white to mark out a path (or using naturally white stone such as marble or chalkstone). It has to be a very dark night for a combination of these techniques not to work!

Home energy saving tips: Cooking and kitchenware

Gas cookers are still generally cheaper to run than electric cookers. Electric grills are particularly power hungry. The amount of gas used by gas cookers is less than it was thanks to electric ignition. It is very difficult to compare cookers because there are so many makes, models and sizes available. Extra features such as fan-assisted ovens add to the complexity and the ways in which energy can be consumed.

• When you are using the oven cook more than one dish at a time whenever possible.
• Saucepans are at their most efficient when they just cover the electric ring.
• Use a lid whenever possible to cut down cooking times and don't be overgenerous with the water. (Cooking conservatively like this is better for your health too. In fact steaming is even better for your health but does take slightly longer than cooking in water.)
• Vegetables cook more evenly and quickly when they are cut up finely. You can cut down cooking times considerably by chopping things into small pieces - as much as 60%. This is worth thinking about if you are steaming veg because you are not increasing the fat needed, nor are you losing vitamins, as you might if you were boiling them.

Microwaves are generally more efficient than electric cookers for the obvious reason that they generally cook things faster. Things which need to cook in water - such as rice - do not necessarily cook faster in a microwave, though. After all, water still boils at 100 degrees, whichever method you use. (See pressure cookers below for a method which does change the boiling temperature of water!) Microwaves are also useful for reheating food and drinks efficiently.

Electric cookers take a long time to heat up and cool down - try to allow for this fact in your cooking timing. Some pans such as ceramics and cast iron also hold heat well. For example rice in a cast iron pan can be switched off before it is fully cooked and the retained heat will be enough to finish the job - if you time it right of course!

Pressure cookers are also good for saving energy. A good pressure cooker can save up to 2/3rds of cooking energy. These devices are really worth a look. Althought they tend to be expensive to buy, they can last a lifetime if they are looked after well.

For more about using a pressure cooker to cut your cooking costs - and saving time - click here

Stainless steel is best for pressure cookers. Aluminium is relatively cheap and it conducts heat quickly which makes aluminium pans good for heating things through quickly. However they do not retain heat well and the metal pits from some ingredients such as fruit acids. (And there is still a slight suspicion that the lifetime effects of small doses of aluminium might contribute to Alzheimer's disease in later life.)

So, if you can, stump up the money for a pressure cooker and enjoy cheaper and faster cooking from now on!

This is one of those energy saving tips that should quickly save you money on your fuel bill. A pressure cooker should have paid for itself after a very few months.

Home energy saving tips: Air conditioning efficiency

Energy saving tips: saving energy when using air conditioning.

Air conditioning units are quite energy hungry.

Be sure to place the thermostat away from any sources of heat, such as PCs, TVs, cookers etc.

When installing central heating, put the heat exchange unit somewhere in the shade as this will help the heat from it to be dispersed more effectively.

If the location of your heat exchanger is unshaded, think about planting shrubs or small trees nearby to produce shade. Be careful that trees are not close enough to disrupt the building's foundations - an expensive mistake!

Think about installing shading for your windows - blinds, shutters and curtains can all help reduce absorption of heat during the day.

Strategically placed trees and shrubs may also help to shade the sunny side of the house or apartment, so cutting down the heating of the building. Just as much of the heat loss of homes in cold weather is though windows, a lot of heat gain in summer also takes place through window glass. So it makes sense to shade your windows effectively if at all possible. This is one energy saving tip that will have a long, slow pay back - unless of course you are willing to buy in some large shrubs or small trees!

Open windows at strategic times. In hot weather there is usually some time during the 24 hours which is a little cooler in most climates. (Often at 4 in the morning!)

Try to cool the house down by letting in cooler air when the outside temperature falls below the inside temperature. Remember, as heat rises, the most effective place to open windows may be the roof! Close them and shade them as soon as the outside temperature gets close to the inside temperature again.

Home energy saving tips: Running the household machines

Energy saving tips: Running your household machines in an energy-efficient way

The washing machine should be run when it's full - but not stuffed to the hilt. Use low temperature washes where possible. Most modern machines are designed to run efficiently and effectively at low temperatures. You should save quite a lot on your fuel bills over a year.

Again, it's worth trying to educate your teenagers to use low temperatures if they no longer trust the grown-ups to wash their fashionable kit! This can work if you emphasise that low temperatures are less likely to fade and distort their clothing.

Energy saving tips: Consider using a washball , too. You can use it for some washes on a speed wash setting (i.e. a short wash cycle).

Home energy saving tips: Dishwashers are also better run full. Obviously the number of washes performed is fewer if you load up fully each time. Dishwashers are increasingly efficient for water and energy use. If you can use low-phophate washing gel or powder, you are reducing their other impacts upon the environment, too. You can open them up early to shortcut the drying cycle if you don't really need it. Most dishes will dry in an hour or two if you open the dishwasher lid to let fresh air in.

Home energy saving tips: Fridges and Freezers are more efficient when cleaned and defrosted regularly. Also make sure that the seal around the edge stays in good shape. Check that the door closes properly each time it's used. Anything that's hot that you want to store is best left to cool until it's around room temperature before you put it inside the fridge or the freezer.

Fridges are best kept not too full, as they are more efficient if the air can circulate properly around the interior. Freezers are more efficient if they are kept pretty full. In both fridges and freezers the bottom is the place for things that really need keeping cold. (Because warm air rises.)

If you are defrosting food for later, defrost it inside the fridge. That way you are using the chilliness of the product to reduce your cooling needs for the fridge. This energy saving tip will only work if you give your defrosting adequate time!

Home energy saving tips: Kettles are better run with the right amount of water for the job. There is no advantage in boiling more than you need - it only goes cold again.

Toasters are generally more efficient than grills (though I'm not convinced that it's worth buying one specially, when you take into account the energy and materials used to make it.)

Televisions and Computers It's well worth switching these off between sessions. Both computers and tvs are relatively heavy consumers of energy, yet many people leave them on for hours when they are not in use. Leaving tvs on standby wastes more energy, too.

So, if you want just one energy saving tip to start: switch off computers and tellies when they're not being used. And unplug them, or switch off at the socket when they are not being used for a few hours.

If you have home energy saving tips which you would like to see added to this site, please drop me a line: Contact Greenfootsteps Thankyou!

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