Covering your swimming pool is not only a great way to save water, but it’ll help keep your pool clean and take some of the pressure off your pump.
4. Air conditioner A standard electric geyser can account for as much as 50% of the electricity bill in many households
1. Geyser A geyser can account for more than 50% of the electricity bill in many regular households with three to four family members, and consumes about 9.25 kWh per day, which works out to 300 kWh a month. At Val de Vie, this equates to more than R600 per month. To help you understand household energy usage, consider this: you would have to cycle vigorously for 3 hours to power your geyser for just 1 hour. However, there are ways to ensure your geyser doesn’t chew up a huge chunk of your monthly budget. Solar water geysers and heat pumps are much lighter on energy, which makes them great alternatives to standard geysers. You could also try and use less warm water whenever you can, for example, by taking shorter showers. This means you’ll also be doing your bit for water conservation.
2. Tumble dryer While it’s a lifesaver on rainy laundry days, your tumble dryer devours a whopping 3 kW per hour. On average, that’s about the same amount of energy your body will generate if you’re doing laundry for 4 years. To save on electricity, it’s best to view your tumble dryer as something you should only indulge in occasionally. Use it only when you really have to and turn to the sun to curb your energy usage: Do laundry on sunny days only or lighten the load with an efficient home energy solution.
3. Swimming pool pump It takes a lot of time and energy to keep a pool crystal clear. Take your pool pump for instance: It consumes about 1.5 kWh or 1,289 kcal per hour. You would have to swim 103 Olympic pool laps to produce that much energy.
Your air conditioner works very hard to keep you cool, consuming around 1.8 kW per hour. That is close to the amount of calories you would burn if you were to take a brisk walk for close to thirteen hours.
5. Portable heater In winter, temperature control proves to be equally costly, with standard portable heaters consuming as much as 1.5 kWh. This would be equivalent to shivering for 3 hours and 10 minutes.
6. Oven On average, your oven uses about 2.3 kW per hour. That’s equivalent to a human being chopping wood for 4 hours.
Lighten the load One way to minimise your electricity usage is by replacing older household appliances with newer, more energy efficient models, that are also better for the environment. Another great electricity saving alternative that can cut your electricity spend by over 50% is a home solar energy solution from Energy Partners Home Solutions – Val de Vie Estate’s official energy partner. As part of their ongoing commitment to sustainable living, Val de Vie has chosen Energy Partners to design state-of-the-art solutions specifically for the estate and its very unique requirements. Whether you are a large or moderate energy consumer, have a single- or a three-phase connection, Energy Partners Home Solutions provides efficient, modular solutions that can be combined to suit your energy needs and pocket. Contact Energy Partners Home Solutions for a no obligation, free consultation with one of their experienced energy consultants. Call them on 086 100 0606 and be sure to mention that you are a Val de Vie resident. For more information, visit www.poweryourself.co.za