Are you tired of paying high energy bills and want to save money? Here are the solutions to reduce your home's energy consumption.
Saving electricity is not a matter of a single day, but of implementing habits in daily life activities to be more efficient with energy consumption. You can start by developing a few simple habits such as: taking advantage of natural light exposure, turning off unused light bulbs, unplugging electronic devices that you are not using at the moment, maintaining the right temperature of the heating or air conditioning.
Here are the measures and tips to minimize energy use so that the savings are reflected in the bill and finally the electricity costs go down once and for all.
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What are the energy saving measures in a house?
Energy consumption is one of the main expenses incurred in a home, since today more than ever we live surrounded by electronic devices that make our bill rise.
That is why we will share with yousome measures you can take to save electricity:
Reducing energy consumption in the building
The Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAE) established through the Technical Building Code that the construction of buildings in Spain must adopt mandatory energy efficiency elements to achieve 70% savings in air conditioning and lighting.
So if you buy a property, be sure to demand the energy certificate to corroborate that it is in optimal conditions and has the corresponding installations of solar thermal energy.
Energy saving through Solar Thermal Energy installation
Choose to install solar thermal panels in the house, since the installation of these devices will allow you to take advantage of solar energy collection to generate hot water or clean electricity in the case of photovoltaic panels.
Likewise, the solar panel contributes effectively to the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions.
It is worth mentioning that there is a wide variety of solar collectors and the cost of their installation ranges from 2,000 to 10,000 euros.
Choose the right device based on the energy consumption parameters (kWh/month) of your bill.
Saving on heating
One of the main elements of energy consumption in Spanish homes is heating, since its use can represent up to 46% of total consumption.
Therefore, it is recommended to maintain it constantly or implement small improvements in the insulation in order to save up to 30% in electrical energy and money.
Reducing energy consumption through thermal insulation in buildings
It is very important that your house has thermal insulation systems, as this increases the percentage of energy savings.
If your home does not have an insulation scheme, do not worry. The Spanish government, through the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (Instituto para la Diversificación y Ahorro de Energía), has made available to citizens various aid schemes for the rehabilitation of buildings such as: the Program of Aid for the Energy Rehabilitation of Existing Buildings (PAREER), the Program for Energy Rehabilitation of Buildings (PREE), or the Exterior Thermal Insulation System (SATE).
Improving lighting to save energy
It is recommended to replace conventional light bulbs with LED bulbs, as this will provide optimal lighting and reduce environmental pollution. In addition, the use of LED lights offers you several benefits, such as:
- Reduction of electricity consumption, as they require less voltage (Watts) to provide a bright light. Savings of up to 80% are possible.
- They have an extended life time and withstand long days of continuous use.
- They are sustainable, thus being an excellent alternative to take care of the environment.
- They reduce the risk of fire, since they produce less heat.
Use of efficient household appliances to consume less electrical energy
As of March 1, 2021, the European Union issued the new energy label for household appliances and it is mandatory for refrigerators, washing machines, ovens and dryers. The label consists of seven classes where "A" indicates higher efficiency and "G" indicates low efficiency. This energy classification is based on the annual energy consumption of each program.
Try to choose household appliances with the energy label, as this way you will be completely sure about their efficiency and in this way you can save up to 50% of electricity and pay less on your electricity bills.
Attached are two images alluding to energy labeling.
Tips to reduce energy consumption
As we mentioned before, to save electricity you have to implement habits to achieve greater efficiency of your consumption.
In this section we will share some tips for you to put into practice in your daily life.
- Isolate possible air leaks in your home. It is very important that you identify where air leaks are occurring, so that leaks at the edges of the structure can be sealed. They are usually concentrated in doors and windows.
- Try to take advantage of natural light for as long as possible.
- Unplug all electrical appliances that you are not using at the moment or when you leave your home. Leave only those appliances that are indispensable, such as the refrigerator, plugged in.
- Use energy-saving bulbs, you can replace the conventional bulb with an energy-saving LED bulb.
- Waterproof the roof or deck of your house with cement mortars or insulating components.
- Paint the walls with light colors, as this way the entrance of natural light is reflected and dispersed more clearly in the interior of the space, thus minimizing the use of artificial light. This is highly recommended for homes with few windows.
- Turn off the light when you don't need it, or install motion sensors that activate when you are near.
- Set the thermostat of your heating or air conditioning to 20° C maximum. Each additional degree increases your energy consumption by 7%.
- Reduce the time spent in the shower or install a boiler to use the excess water for watering plants.
- Choose an appropriate electricity tariff. This will depend on the use of electricity during the course of the day, for example: one family may have a higher electricity consumption in the evenings, while another family may consume more energy when coming home from work. There are two electricity tariffs: the fixed electricity tariff and the variable tariff.
In the following link you can download a guide on how to save electricity, by the IDAE.
Conclusions
Contributing to saving energy at home and reducing electricity consumption not only helps you pay your bill, it also helps the environment, since in recent years global warming has triggered many environmental and pollution problems.
This is why the need arises to take actions that help us preserve the quality of life of future generations and protect our planet.
For this reason, it is very important to modify consumption habits and instill in children from an early age to take the right actions in terms of recycling, energy and fuels.
