Longer days, sunny weather, hangouts, holidays, beach, sun, sea… All of the aforementioned reasons are why we love summer and why we look forward to it year-round. Now that it has finally arrived, it brought with it the inevitable need for cooling down, which we mainly notice through increased costs. This is why we bring you 5 simple yet effective tips that will help you fight off high energy bills this summer.
- Get Grilling!
Cooking during hot summer days can be unbearable. Household appliances, such as fridges or stoves, generate additional heat and can increase room temperatures by as much as 10 degrees celsius. However, you can easily reduce the temperature of your kitchen, but also electricity costs by using a microwave oven or by grilling. Using a microwave will significantly reduce energy consumption while producing less heat and grilling will also allow you to enjoy the summer days with pleasant company.
- Use Cold or Lukewarm Water for Washing
Avoid using hot water whenever possible. 90% of energy used by washing machines is needed to heat water, therefore washing with cold water will result in significant savings. At the same time, since water consumption in the summer usually increases due to the care of garden plants, one way of retaining the same level of consumption is through watering flowers or grass early in the morning or evening, which reduces the evaporation of water in the summer heat.
- Take Advantage of the Warm Weather
With summer weather comes numerous benefits and it’s up to us to use them to reduce energy consumption and electricity bills. Therefore, air-dry clothes instead of using the dryer. The same principle applies to dishes; use cold water and wait for them to air dry, instead of using your dishwasher’s drying cycle. By using sunlight you can also reduce the amount of electricity you consume and by ventilating rooms in the evening you can cool your living space without using air conditioners.
- Pay Attention to Electronic Devices
Do not place devices that generate heat, such as lamps or televisions, near thermostats. By creating additional heat, these devices can “deceive” the thermostat and show higher room temperatures and thus become the reason for increased air conditioning use which will result in higher energy consumption. At the same time, these devices need to be switched off if they are not being used to avoid generating unnecessary additional heat. Also, it is important to note that all devices in standby still consume electricity, which can amount to up to 10% of average annual consumption, therefore their exclusion is of utmost importance.
- Use LED Lighting
Curtains or shutters will block out the sun and thus reduce room temperatures. At the same time, it will result in the need for more artificial light so be wary of which light bulbs you’re using. For example, 90% of the energy created by incandescent lightbulbs are converted into heat. On the other hand, LED bulbs use 75% less energy and last up to 50 times longer than traditional ones, thus resulting in savings on your electricity bills.