Today, energy consumption has emerged as a pressing issue affecting economies, businesses, and households. Power plants generating electricity are the primary sources of greenhouse gases. These plants also emit pollutants, including sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. Apart from being responsible for climate change, these gases have a negative impact on human health and the environment. Therefore, it becomes crucial to find effective ways to reduce energy consumption at home. Because, when you reduce energy consumption, you not only contribute to an environment’s safety, but you also save money on your utility bill. It further helps in conserving resources and decreasing emissions.
Are you tired of paying hefty electric bills? Try integrating affordable and clean energy options into your consumption. It fosters sustainability and helps you save money. Try to adopt practices that promote energy efficiency, advocating for policies and enhancing energy access. Doing so helps you make significant strides towards a more sustainable future. You must also thoroughly understand how you use and the energy consumed by the various household appliances. Hence, Brick & Bolt brings a detailed guide on how to reduce energy consumption, including various household appliance and their electricity consumption.
Various Household Appliances and Their Electricity Consumption
You use various home appliances and gadgets, which you often take for granted for energy consumption. From refrigerators to air conditioners, these appliances play a vital role in our daily lives. We rely on them heavily for comfort and to make our lives easier. However, you must understand the amount of electricity these appliances consume and how their consumption affects our bills. So that you can find effective ways to reduce energy consumption at home
Enlisted are some of the most common appliances that consume more energy for heating and cooling.
1. Air Conditioners
India’s summers are sultry and uncomfortable, making air conditioners a must have appliance. However, your air conditioner is one of the most significant consumers of electricity. Its consumption of electricity depends on various factors, including the size of the room, the number of people present in the room, the temperature you set and its age.
2. Refrigerator
Refrigerators, which function 24/7, are another necessary household appliance that consumes the most energy. In Indian households, an average refrigerator consumes between 30 and 40kwh of electricity in a month. The electricity consumption depends on various factors, including the age and size of your refrigerator, the ambient temperature, and how often you open the refrigerator.
3. TV and Cable Box
Newer television models, especially OLED and LED, are more energy efficient than older CRT and plasma screens. The former models offer better picture quality despite consuming less electricity. Most often, you keep your television in standby mode, which is when your television sets are off and plugged in. Standby mode has an adverse impact on electricity consumption.
4. Electric Ovens and Stoves
Cooking appliances, especially those that run on electricity, like electric ovens and stoves, consume a substantial amount of energy. You can experience this during extended cooking sessions. Therefore, you must practice extensive meal planning and use microwaves and slow cookers. They help you reduce electricity use.
5. Clothes Dryer
Your busy life schedule leaves you less time for household chores like washing and drying clothes. Therefore, we often depend on appliances like washing machines and clothes dryers for faster washing and drying. However, these appliances consume a high amount of electricity.
10 Most Effective Ways to Reduce Energy Consumption at Home
Saving electricity doesn’t mean you need to do less or sacrifice your comforts. With the new, efficient and affordable tech. It’s easier to save more electricity. It will reduce your utility bills, thereby reducing environmental impact.
Enlisted are some of the effective ways to reduce energy consumption at home.
1. Purchase Energy-Efficient Electrical Appliances
The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) issues BEE star labels as a voluntary method for manufacturers to define an appliance’s energy efficiency. You can find the stars on the label, which define the product’s efficiency. The more the stars, the higher the efficiency. Simply speaking, the higher the energy efficiency rating of the appliance, the lower the energy consumption. If you are looking for the best ways to cut energy consumption at home, look for those appliances with 5-star BEE ratings. Besides reducing your electricity bills, it positively affects the environment.
2. Harness Solar Energy with Solar Panels
Installing a complete solar system in your residence is often expensive, but the solar photovoltaic system helps significantly reduce your energy costs. However, you can opt for other simpler, more cost-efficient ways to use solar energy. You can accomplish this by installing outdoor solar lights in your garden and balcony. Solar pumps are another crucial appliance that helps you save electricity. You can also switch to solar fans and solar geysers to reduce electricity consumption at your residence.
3. Never Keep Appliances in Standby Mode
Most of us often leave our appliances running in standby mode. However, you can save electricity and money just by remembering to turn your appliances off standby mode. You can turn off almost all electrical appliances you use at your home at the plug without hindering their programming. With standby savers, you can turn all your appliances off standby in one go to save electricity. If you aren’t sure about a particular appliance, be sure to check the instructions.
4. Opt for Smart Appliances for Remote Control and Optimal Usage
Switching to smart appliances is one of the best ways to save on your electricity consumption. You can increase your home’s energy efficiency using home automation and IoT. These devices allow you to automate things within your home, thereby reducing electricity consumption. It’s a great way to save electricity. Smart devices come with a remote control, helping you select a schedule to turn them on and off.
5. Switch to BLDC Fans
Almost everyone heard about the BLDC fans. These energy-efficient fans are known for their brushless direct current motors, which function on direct current electricity. With these fans, you can save up to 60 per cent of your electricity consumption when compared to the normal induction motor-based fans. Besides, you enjoy additional user functionality, including a remote control for switching on and off the fan, timer functionality and compatibility with voice assistants.
6. Operate Your Air Conditioners at 24°C
Hot and humid summers make life uncomfortable. Most people tend to relax in the comfort of their air conditioners, which increases their electricity bill. However, you can reduce the energy cost by running your AC at 24°C throughout. An ideal temperature keeps your room cool and saves energy. Alternatively, you can set a timer on your AC. If you have an old AC, replace it with one with a 5-star BEE rating. In addition to reducing your electricity bills, you can also use different methods to enhance indoor air quality.
7. Purchase Water Heaters with Smart Energy Management
Do you regularly use water heaters? Well, they are the most useful appliances during the winter months. The demerit of using them is that they consume a lot of electricity. If you love warm baths, switching to a water heater with smart energy management is better. You will experience significant cost savings, reduced carbon footprint, and low-cost maintenance. These advanced water heaters can adjust their energy consumption based on their usage.
8. Switch to Natural Light
Natural lighting is an eco-friendly lighting option that saves your electricity bill and enhances your room’s elegance. When the sharp beam of sunlight, the shadows peeping through the curtains and the sober moonlight entering your room enhance the ambience of your house. Opening the blinds, creating reflection with mirrors, and piping lights through fibre optics and other channelling resources are some of the best ways to bring natural light to your home. Alternatively, try using sober colours for your walls and glossy finishes. It helps you create a brighter atmosphere as it reflects the light sources.
9. Use Energy Efficient Light Bulbs
Are you using the right light bulbs for your home? Traditional incandescent light bulbs consume a high amount of electricity and do not last as long as energy-efficient alternatives. When shopping for light bulbs, be sure to look for a symbol for energy efficiency or an Energy Star. These certified LED light bulbs consume 90 per cent less energy than traditional bulbs while offering the same amount of light. While most people avoid purchasing energy-efficient bulbs, as they are more expensive. However, their longer lifetimes mean they cost less in the long run.
10. Weatherize Your Home
Weatherizing involves sealing air leaks around your home. It is another way to reduce your heating and cooling expenses. The shield between the outside and inside environment creates a barrier to weather, air, and moisture. Vents, doors, and windows are some of the most common sources of air leaks. Therefore, as a homeowner, you must ensure that there are no cracks or openings between the wall and vent, windows, and doorframes.
If you find the presence of leaks between stationary objects, such as the wall and window frame, apply caulk to seal the air leaks. In case of moving objects, such as operable windows and doors, opt for weather stripping to seal the air leaks. Caulking and weather stripping are simple air-sealing techniques offering a return on investment in less than one year. Air leaks can also occur through openings present in the wall, floor, and ceiling caused by plumbing, ducting and electrical wiring.
Conclusion
In today’s world, where energy consumption is increasing and electricity bills are never-ending, it is essential to find effective ways to reduce energy consumption that help you save money and the environment. Even when you implement simple yet effective strategies, you can reduce energy usage and ultimately cut down your monthly expenses.
As the most experienced and leading construction firm in Noida, Brick & Bolt saves your electricity costs by offering energy-efficient fixtures and green buildings. Apart from this, the organisation offers all the services from the planning of a project to handing over the project to the client. With Brick & Bolt, you enjoy real-time tracking, transparent communication, quality checks, and updates immediately. The organisation uses the latest technology for quality assurance and the progress of its projects.