Summer season sees a sharp increase in consumption of electricity resulting in inflated bills, power failures and outages. We can all reduce our consumption of electricity by adopting some basic methods, and relying upon natural resources like sunlight and wind instead of electricity.
Turn it off
Do you leave the lights on when you walk out the room? What about your television, computer and stereo system? Can you see the little red or green light when they are in standby mode? That means they are still consuming electricity, so always remember to switch off and unplug all electric appliances; especially at night. Do the same for the microwave oven and mobile chargers. Make it a habit to go round the house at night and check each item. Don’t leave the bathroom light on all night long. Use a low watt night light instead.
Less use of washing machine
In countries where there is abundance of sunlight during summer season, do not use an electric laundry dryer for drying out clothes. As soon as the clothes are washed, switch off the washing machine and hang out the clothes to dry naturally.
Reduce consumption
Sibling wars are a perfectly natural way of life, but for the sake of a noble cause maybe you can ask your children to give peace a chance. Instead of studying in individual rooms and hence using a lot of electricity at home, make them study in one room and cut down on the use of air conditioner, electric bulbs, fans etc.
Use natural sunlight.
In favorable weather conditions, make your children study outside in the garden, rooftops or the balcony, during daytime. They will have to prove they are responsible enough to avoid distractions and concentrate solely on their studies, but by using sunlight they’ll be saving a lot of electricity. Even if they cannot study outdoors, drag their chairs near the window and make them use natural light for reading or doing homework.
Clean them up
How often are light bulbs, tube lights and AC filters cleaned in your home? Dust often gathers on these ignored items. You’ll be surprised to see the difference in brightness once all light sources are cleaned up. Wash the air conditioning filters often. In the summer, clean the filter at least twice a month to keep the air conditioner from working too hard. You’ll notice that it works fine on high thermostat once the filters are clean.
Use Energy Savers
Replace light bulbs with energy savers. They use less power than ordinary bulbs and are ideal as porch and garden lights.
Don’t waste cooling.
Don’t open the refrigerator door unnecessarily. If you need 6-7 things from the fridge like eggs, bread, milk, butter etc, take them out all at once in a tray and then close the door. Similarly at night if you need to put back leftovers and other items, place them all near the fridge and then put them inside. Don’t leave the door open while you fetch one thing at a time from the kitchen shelf.
Always check your windows and door(s) are closed properly so that if the air conditioner is on, the cooling benefits and electricity won’t be wasted.