When it comes to paying bills, the electricity bill always stands out as the largest and most disruptive expense in the already stretched budget of survival from paycheck to paycheck. Fortunately, with significant costs, it’s often possible to achieve the greatest savings. Here are some tips, some requiring no investment other than changing certain habits, some requiring small investments, while others may only pay off after several years
Replace traditional bulbs with LED lights. While compact fluorescent bulbs, also known as CFLs, have been popular for a long time, LED lighting is increasingly gaining popularity. LED bulbs are still relatively expensive, but their installation pays off significantly. Replacing all bulbs at once is a considerable cost for most households, so the advice is to gradually replace them.
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Choose two bulbs in your home that are on for the longest periods during the day and replace them first, then another pair after a month. Within a few months, all lighting in the house will be completely replaced, and LED bulbs rarely burn out. Additionally, LED bulbs consume about ten times less power for the same level of brightness and are incomparably more durable. When a 100-watt incandescent bulb, which burns for five or six hours a day, is replaced with an LED bulb, the savings are significant.
If you use electric heating, check the quality of your windows and doors. It would be great to say, install new PVC windows. Of course, that’s a mission impossible for most, but heat losses due to poor windows and doors can be reduced by 95% with just a little investment.
Check, as the first cold days arrive, by feeling around the edges and joints if cold air is entering the room. If so, buy weatherstripping tape and apply it to the edges.
Pay attention, where you feel cold air with your hand may not be where it enters. It’s necessary to completely seal the entire frame and ensure complete tightness. Check the gaps between the window and frame. If they’re larger than three millimeters, a rubber strip may suffice, but if they’re smaller, a softer sponge strip is a better solution, which won’t prevent the window from closing.
Yes, it would be wise to say that it’s necessary to insulate the house well. You probably already know that, as well as knowing it’s very expensive…
Apart from electric heating, the biggest consumer is undoubtedly the water heater. If possible, only turn it on at night when electricity is cheaper. If there are several members in the household, one hot water heater is usually not enough for 24 hours. However, savings can still be achieved by turning it off in the afternoon.
Find out, depending on the needs of the entire household, when you can turn it off earliest, ensuring everyone has enough hot water before bedtime, then turn it back on when the cheaper electricity starts.
Mobile phones, tablets, laptops. No one thinks of them as electricity consumers. Yet, it’s possible to make some savings here too. The idea is not to charge the phone during off-peak hours but to unplug the charger when not in use.
Even when the phone or laptop is not connected to the charger, it still consumes some electricity. You can easily check this by touching the charger when the device is not charging. If it’s warm, electricity is still flowing through it.
Old appliances typically consume more electricity than newer ones for the same job done. Just like old cars compared to modern ones. This applies mostly to old refrigerators, especially if their door seals are cracked and loose.
So, think carefully if you really need that 40-year-old fridge on the terrace used occasionally to cool beer or watermelon, but constantly plugged in. Also, check if your refrigerator is set to maximum. It usually is, but more often than not, it’s not necessary.
Dishwashing in households with an electric water heater is a silent killer of the household budget. So, either wash dishes in the evening when the water heater is off, or invest in a dishwasher. Modern dishwashers are more economical than hand washing and come with a timer for delayed activation after the start of the cheaper tariff.
The electricity consumption for dishwashing in a larger household can be equivalent to the installment payments for a new dishwasher if bought on a 12-month plan. An additional advantage is no more hand washing dishes.
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