Don’t let rising power bills shock you

Electricity costs are rising. So, if you don’t want to get saddled with a hefty bill, it pays to take a few proactive steps to cut down on your consumption.

Here are a few nifty ways to go about it.

Retiring old incandescent light bulbs and switching to compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs is the first step to reduce electricity consumption.

Yes, CFL bulbs are more expensive — a normal 60-Watt bulb costs just ₹25-30, while a comparable CFL bulb starts from ₹250. However, the difference is that the power consumption of a CFL bulb providing a similar amount of light is just 15 Watts.

That is, a 60-Watt bulb consumes 60 Watts every hour. So, if you leave it on for a day, the electricity usage over the 24-hour period would be 1.44 units. In contrast, the consumption by a CFL would be 0.36 units.

Another factor to consider is longevity. A normal light bulb usually has a maximum life of 1,200 hours, whereas a CFL lasts for about 8,000 hours. This means, you would have to buy more than six normal bulbs to keep up with a CFL. All this more than compensates for a higher initial cost. Given that branded CFLs come with a one- or two-year warranty, it’s an easy decision to make.

Similar logic can apply to LED bulbs, but the cost of purchase is more prohibitive — a 3-Watt bulb from Havells costs ₹485, while a 14-Watt model from Philips costs ₹1,199. The expense really becomes a concern when you consider the number of light fixtures in a typical house; it’s better to wait till the technology becomes affordable.

Household appliances such as your refrigerator, television, washing machine and air-conditioner can be real power hogs. But not all appliances are created equal and with energy conservation being a hot topic today, using a more efficient machine can reduce your power consumption costs drastically. But how do you tell which products are more energy-efficient?

The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) is an Indian standards organisation that certifies electrical appliances on the basis of their energy efficiency. BEE uses a five-star rating system for products that range from One Star (least energy-efficient, thus least money saved) to Five Stars (most energy-efficient, thus most money saved).

When buying new products, ascertain its BEE Star Rating as a guide to determining how energy-efficient it is. As a bonus, most star-rated appliances include a helpful indicator on how many units of power they will consume in a year.

For example, while a one-star LCD television will consume a maximum of 426 units in a year, a model with a five-star rating will consume 273 units, around 35 per cent less power. The higher star ratings do turn an appliance costlier. But the same logic as explained above applies here as well.

But you certainly cannot replace all your appliances. What then? There are still a few ways to improve efficiency of your existing household appliances.

For example, did you know that a full freezer consumes less energy than one that is empty? In case you have space in your freezer, just put in bottles of water to make optimal use of the space. Setting your refrigerator temperature at the most optimal level — somewhere between 1.6 and 5 degrees Celsius — is another neat trick.

As for your air conditioners, clean your air filter once a month or even replace it to keep it at peak performance. When running for extended periods, use the auto feature so that the room temperature is maintained with minimal electricity consumption. Doing a systematic overhaul every year can also reduce your air conditioning costs.

With washing machines, it makes sense to use it only with full loads to avoid extra cycles. If that’s not possible, at least ensure that it is running with less water so that the cycles are shorter. This is more of a concern with semi-automatic machines.

But sometimes, the simplest things to do are the hardest to put in practice. Most of us leave our TV, music system, set-top boxes and other appliances in standby mode when we’re not using them.

Granted, the power these devices consume is small, but when trying to cut down, every little effort adds up. Over prolonged periods of time, these “energy vampires” use power for features such as clock displays. Consider plugging such electronics into a power strip and turn off the strip when not in use. The same logic applies to appliances like light bulbs and fans, when not required. Reduce energy costs on cooling by blocking out the sun using shades, blinds and curtains.

Light-reflecting paint can also bring down electricity costs by reducing air conditioning requirements.