In ancient times, when Alessandro Volta conducted his first experiments, and Thomas Edison saw the invented light bulb, could they have imagined how the lives of their descendants would change in relation to their discoveries?Nowadays it is impossible to imagine life without electricity.This is the source where everything is tied: information, data, household needs, comfort, communication, leisure.An accident in one capital city's power grid crippled it.The work of maternity hospitals, hospitals, water utilities stopped, schools and residential buildings were cut off, more than 3 thousand citizens were stuck in elevators, and some, as they say, could not get out of their apartments equipped with smart home systems.In a sense, we are all held hostage by electricity.Although the stranded people are still them.
By increasing the number of electrical appliances in our lives, we inadvertently increase the load not only on the city's power grid, but also on our wallets.In the homes of our mothers and grandmothers there was a TV, a refrigerator, and the lucky few had a washing machine.What works and uses electricity in our home leaves our grandmothers in awe of its quantity and functionality.
However, all the pleasures in our lives come at a price.And to see the enthusiastic grandmothers - included.Every time, looking at the electricity bill, it begins to look as if magical gnomes live in the apartment, who amuse themselves by scrolling the meter wheel, speeding up its movement two or even three times.But no, these are not gnomes.These are our insatiable electronic friends.
To curb the appetite of imaginary gnomes and ease the fate of our wallets, we tried to find out whether, in principle, it is possible to save electricity.
To do this, we examine the savings methods offered online, both obvious and unusual.We invite you to familiarize yourself with the results of our work.
An obvious way to save energy
The most obvious, lying on the surface, is to turn off the light when not in use.If your memory fails, or you have so much going on that you don't have time to reach out and flip a switch, there is a way out.Motion sensor or presence sensor.They are installed in the room and react to the appearance of someone in the room.They automatically turn on when you enter the room and turn off when you leave.Ask the installer to set the sensors so they don't react to cats and other animals.Otherwise, electricity payments, instead of the expected reduction, will skyrocket.
Replace incandescent light bulbs with their energy-efficient counterparts.And even better - the led.They take less energy, while lasting longer and shining brighter.If you install a sectional lamp and complete the room with several light elements, you can use them instead of necessary.Dimmers (elements that allow you to adjust the brightness of the lighting) with continuous use will also help reduce energy costs for lighting.Experienced people recommend choosing lamps for a room according to its level of use.Obviously, you can hang cheeky, but less energy-consuming lights in the pantry than in the living room or kitchen.New generation lamps are more resistant to voltage surges.Well, the last piece of advice about lamps is that you should not be lazy to regularly wipe dust from them.Dusty lamps provide a dim light and use more energy to heat the dust.
Buy Electrical Appliances with High Energy Efficiency (Class A+)
Modern appliances know how to spend energy wisely.Most dishwashers, washing machines of the latest models and other devices are equipped with an energy-saving eco mode.Use it regularly.If possible, choose the lowest oven, washing machine and dishwasher temperature.
The main energy cost goes to heating the device;By heating it at least, you can save a lot.
The load level of the washing machine is also important.Load it according to the technical documentation.Overloading or underloading will increase energy consumption.The same goes for vacuum cleaners with unwashed filters and full dust collectors, air conditioners with dirty interiors, fridges with ice, kettles with scale and other everyday joys.We remember that excessive heating of any material increases your costs.Washing machines and dishwashers connected to centralized hot water will consume less heating energy.But instead of electricity expenses, you will increase the amount of payment for hot water supply.And here you have to consider more expensive resources.
This point, of course, is more logical to include in the list of unusual things, but let it be here anyway.Unused household appliances should always be unplugged.When turned on, they consume a lot of electricity.It would be ideal if, when designing the electrical wiring, de-energizing all sockets is provided with a slight movement of the hand.Except for those who dominate the refrigerator.Then you can leave the house without fear of fire, power surges and energy loss.
If you remove the device from charging as soon as it is finished, you save energy and contribute to the long service life of the device itself and the charger.
Devices that you use regularly throughout the day do not need to be unplugged every time.For example, it is better to send the computer to sleep mode.Because for some devices, turning on and off consumes more energy than being in sleep mode.Be sure to remove the disc from the drive.When turned on, additional energy is spent on their promotion.
If you haven't already installed a separate toggle switch to turn off the outlet, use a surge protector for your equipment with the ability to turn off the power.
And a little more about technology.In many high-rise buildings, according to established standards, electricity instead of gas stoves are provided.
Therefore, buy an induction cooker for an apartment on a high floor.It is specifically designed to save electricity.But it will be better if you buy a dish with a flat bottom that fits the size of the burner for the kitchen.And when cooking, you will cover the pan with a lid.And you'll finish cooking dinner on the cooling burner, turning it off 5-10 minutes before it's done.And in this way, we smooth smooth iron with the iron already turned off and cooling.
Kettle?In addition to timely descaling, we recommend that you only pour water into it as you need it.
Now to the fridge.And reform will not let it go.The refrigerator should not be close to walls or other surfaces.Especially if the surface is heated - for example, an oven.This will prevent it from overheating.Do not forget to check the rubber seal and the presence of ice.The main function of a refrigerator is to protect your food by keeping it at a low temperature.And if there is a heat source from outside, the refrigerator will try to cool with twice the energy (electricity).Of course, at your expense.
You can also say a few words about the movie.High-quality movies take more energy, but we wouldn't suggest you save money to watch movies.This is blasphemy.
The repair concept itself can make a small, but still significant contribution to your paycheck savings.For those who did not go beyond physics at school, it is clear that light-colored wall coverings will save electricity and heat, because, unlike dark ones, they do not absorb them.This also includes wiping windows and heating equipment from dust.Dust is a known heat absorber.And if, in addition, your windows have improved light transmission and energy efficiency, this will save you even more money.
Choose housing with windows facing south.Then you will receive heat and light directly from the sun, and completely free.But this bonus is balanced by the fact that in the summer you have to turn on the split system more often.The south side heats up quickly, and in such hot weather the rooms without air conditioning may be uncomfortable.Therefore, keep in mind that small savings in winter can result in big expenses in summer.
Most of the heat (and, thus, the loss of energy to heat the room) goes to the wall where the radiator is attached.Installing a heat reflector between the wall and the battery will allow you to use the heat produced without the cost of heating the street.According to experts, this step allows you to raise the air temperature in the living room by 2-3 degrees without additional energy costs.
Now let's turn to a method of saving that in our reality is more unusual than feasible.However, we will tell you about them.
A less likely way to save
Replace your home wiring with more efficient wiring by arranging power sources so you can eliminate the need for extra cables and conductors.Well, since you're rebooting, keep the switches on for everything except the fridge, described above.
Eliminate heat loss.Experts with thermal imaging will tell you about your home's weak points.And in accordance with the diagnosis, it is necessary to strengthen the weak, protect the cold, and dry the damp.In most cases, the owner will also need to insulate the walls and replace the windows.
If you are a happy owner of individual heating, we recommend that you install a boiler with a thermostat.It can control the heating temperature, preventing it from rising on the set.The absence of additional heating equals the saving of a fraction of the electricity.
Install a smart home system in your home.It automatically sets the optimal energy consumption.With this system, you can control the electricity in your own apartment, and remotely.In our opinion, the only weakness of the system will be told to you by friends who had an accident in 2015. On the other hand, such force majeure events are rare and do not cover all the benefits of a smart home.
If you fear machine rebellion and believe in the victory of artificial intelligence over human intelligence, this option is also not for you.
Install the electric generator.Windy, solar.And become free energy.You think this is right out of the realm of science fiction, don't you?In vain.
If you plan to move to hot countries, remember that in Greece, for example, solar panels are used as a source of energy, because centralized electricity is very expensive.
Two-phase meter installation.The idea is to move the main business to the night, when the load on the city's power grid is minimal, and thus the tariff is relatively economical.Before changing the meter, please make sure that you are a night owl and that the nocturnal lifestyle (in particular, washing dishes, laundry and using electrical appliances) does not burden you.And also make sure your neighbors are also owls, or take care of additional sound insulation so as not to incur the wrath of your neighbors.
In many regions, power grid representatives also offer to install two-phase meters for free.But practice has shown that there are still discrepancies in the indicators and not entirely correct calculations.Therefore, people are in no hurry to convert their ordinary meters to two-phase, despite all the benefits.
And the most unreliable way to save electricity, including in the top 3 employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and Fire Services, is independent manipulation of wiring, as a result of which the line bypasses the meter.Built without knowledge of basic technical safety standards and the laws of physics, such structures become the cause of fires and other disasters.Not to mention the fact that city services can check the equipment and find out your secret scheme.For an experienced energy engineer, such a search will not take much time.And then, instead of saving, you will be forced to pay a small fine for your initiative.