How to Save Energy at Home 2
Written by Ahmad Fraij
In April issue, we discussed how to save energy in the heating, cooling and refrigeration appliances and in this issue, we will discuss how to save energy in the laundry, dishwashing machine and in the cooking appliances:
Laundry
- Make sure you have a reasonable amount of laundry to run the washing machine at full load. The washing machine uses the same amount of energy regardless it has full load or few items.
- Always Try to wash the clothes by cold water.
- Always try to dry the clothes by the sun using the clothesline instead of electric or gas dryer.
- Check your energy bill to see if you’re on a time-of-use energy tariff. If you are, set your washing machine to run during Off-Peak or shoulder times (usually night time), and not during Peak times during the day (unless you have a solar PV system).
Dishwashing Machine
- Clean your dirty dishes in the same time. It is more efficient to run the dishwashing machine with full load rather than with few dishes.
- Clean the filter of the dishwashing machine regularly.
- Check your energy bill to see if you’re on a time-of-use energy tariff. If you are, set your dishwasher machine to run during Off-Peak or shoulder times (usually night time), and not during Peak times during the day (unless you have a solar PV system)
Cooking
- Thaw the frozen food in the fridge that you are planning to cook during the day and not in the microwave. This will reduce the cooking time and avoid microwave energy consumption.
- Use pots and pans that have tight lids and flat bases that cover the entire hotplate to minimize energy losses.
- Clean your range hood filters regularly. Dirty filters will increase the energy consumption of the kitchen exhaust fan.
- Use the microwave instead of the traditional electric oven. The microwave consumes less energy than the electric oven.
- Check the seal of the oven and make sure it is tight to prevent heat escape from the oven. You can check for bad seals by placing a $5 note in the oven frame and if it slips, this means that the seal is not effective and needs to be replaced.
Electric Kettle
Boil only the needed water volume. If you put more than the required water in the kettle, it will take more time to boil it and consume more energy. Also, the leftover boiled water in the kettle will cool down over time and you will need to boil it again when needed, which will consume double the electricity.
How to Save Energy at Home How to Save Energy at Home
