PINERGY puts you back in control of your spending. Here are some useful electricity-saving tips to help you maximise your savings on a prepaid electricity plan.
INSULATION
- More than 50% of energy used for winter heating leaves your home through uninsulated walls, floors, ceilings and attics. Insulation traps small pockets of air between warm and cold areas inside your home and helps keep warm air in during winter. Insulation is the key to big energy savings.
- Adding rolls or sheets of fibreglass insulation in your attic is one of the most cost-effective savings measures and one you can do yourself.
- Heat rises, but it also sinks into the basement and crawl space through uninsulated floors. Make your home more comfortable and cut heating losses by insulating floors.
- Seal cracks where pipes, electrical wires, vents and ducts enter your home.
- About 2% of air escapes your home through electrical outlets, especially on outside walls. Install insulation made for electrical outlets. You can also use safety outlet plugs to stop cold air from entering your home.
- Insulate hot water pipes in unheated areas to keep hot water hot.
IMMERSION
- Water heating is a typical family’s third-largest energy expense. Take a shower instead of a bath, you’ll use less hot water.
- Install a low-flow aerator or flow restrictor on an existing showerhead and you’ll use less water when it seems like more! Both are inexpensive and easy to install – just screw them in.
- Turn off hot water when you don’t need it. Don’t let it run when you wash or shave.
- Use a timer to heat the water for when you need it.
- Fix faulty plumbing or dripping taps. A single dripping hot water tap can waste 212 gallons of water a month. That can increase your water bill and your energy bill.
- Keep your hot water hot by making sure pipes in unheated areas are insulated.
- Put an insulating blanket around your water heater. It holds heat in.
- Always use cold water when it will do the job as well as hot.
- Once a year, drain the water heater tank completely. Then turn the incoming water on and off, alternately, for about 20 seconds. These actions flush minerals and sediment from inside the tank and make your water heater more efficient. (NOTE: Some newer models are self-cleaning. Check the manufacturer’s manual.)
FIREPLACE
- Close the damper when the fireplace isn’t being used. About 14% of air escapes your home through the fireplace chimney.
- Try not to run the fireplace and central heating system at the same time.
- Seal unused fireplaces to keep heat from escaping and cold air from coming in.
ELECTRIC SHOWERS
- Take a shower rather than a bath. A typical shower uses only one-fifth of the energy of a full bath.
ELECTRIC HEATERS
- When buying heaters, make sure they are the right size for the rooms they are to heat. Electric heaters consume electricity at the most expensive charge rate.
ELECTRIC BLANKETS
- Switch on electric blankets no more than half an hour before you go to bed and switch off just before you get into bed.