From Guest Blogger Lillian Connors: Roads Towards More Rational Electricity Use

If you are shocked every month you receive an electricity bill, or you care for the environment and are worried about energy consumption or both for that matter, it was high time something was done about how electricity is being used in your household. There is a number of ways to turn a household of any size and location into a more rational electricity consumer. Let us discuss the most universally applicable ones in closer detail.

Optimal use of air conditioners

Given the climate changes we are facing, there are rare places that do not use air conditioners during hot summer and even spring and autumn days. Although using them is inevitable, there is a simple way of making it more rational. Adopt a 10-degree difference rule. What this means in practice is to set the thermostat to a temperature that is no more than 10 degrees cooler than the outside one. This will not only make a significant difference in electricity consumption, but provide a healthier ambient, as well.

Replacing outdated appliances

With constant technological advancements and alarming energy consumption predictions in mind, responsible manufacturers worldwide are regularly improving and updating their products by making them less consuming and more efficient.  Therefore, replacing your outdated appliances with those that belong to a power saving palette is a sensible thing to do. This is especially true for fridges, water heaters and stoves, given the fact that they are constantly used and large electricity consumers. Despite the initial costs, this will be a long term investment that will bring substantial savings.

LED there be light

one of the fastest, easiest and most cost efficient ways of making the use of electricity substantially more rational is replacing all your incandescent and CFL bulbs with LED ones. Why is this so? LEDs use half the wattage CFLs do and up to 10 times less than incandescent bulbs. On top of that, their average lifespan is 5 to 20 times longer, making them the smartest investment when reduced energy consumption/investment ratio is concerned, both instantly and in the long term.

Unplugging

Count all the electronic devices you own that use rechargeable batteries and whose chargers are constantly plugged in regardless if they are used at the moment or not.  On average, the total number exceeds at least half a dozen. The problem with this is the fact that they consume electricity even though they are not charging anything at the moment. Unplug them, just as you should do with any other type of device that is not currently being used, especially when you leave home or go away for a couple of days, advise the guys who own and operate Sydney Electrician.

Going solar

There are two ways of making the best of solar energy. First, maximize the use of natural light. Let the sunshine in by using curtains made of lighter material or use none at all wherever appropriate. Consider adding new windows if possible and further cut the use of electricity for lighting. Secondly, take solar panels into serious consideration. Just like it is the case with replacing outdated appliances, the initial investment will pay off long term since a normal size household saves around $600 a year on average when using solar panels. On the other hand, if you tend to move a lot, consider solar leasing instead.

There are several roads towards more rational electricity use. If taking all of them at once is too big of a task, do not give up on them entirely.  Go one at a time and upgrade at your own pace.