Be your own “Light-saver”

 

It’s no secret that I am an eternal optimist, a glass-half-full kinda girl if you will, and I prefer to live my life that way…. but damn!!! ALL this negativity about Electricity and Water Shortage in our country is killing my vibe!

We need to turn this around!

I refuse to believe that we, the little people can’t do something to assist this situation!!!

 

So…….. Is there more you could be doing at home to be your own “Light Saver”? – I’m glad you asked!  Of Course there is!!!

Now when I read these out to you, you probably gonna go “Duh Sherina! we know all of these!!!”…… Well that’s awesome ….are you actually doing any of them?…..

ye I didn’t think so …. so let’s get started shall we!

 

• Turn your geyser temperature down to 60^o Celsius – You can bath/shower quite comfortably at this temperature, and it’s cheaper to maintain than the standard 70^o Celsius.
  

This is an easy one – In most cases, the thermostat is located in the little cover over the electrical element of the geyser. Switch off the electricity circuit at the mains, undo the cover, and then turn down the thermostat using a screw driver. Or hire a plumber to help you 😉

 

• Cut down on the amount of hot water you use.

1. Shower instead of bath (If possible) – I’m personally not fussy as long as you get one of those done every day!…. but if showering saves electricity and water then that’s what I’m all for!
2. Don’t wash your dishes under a running tap….. Guilty!… I do this all the time, but I will make a concerted effort to allow enough dishes to accumulate (yuck!) before I run a full sink and do them all one shot!
3. If you have your hot water tap connected to your washing machine – TURN that OFF RIGHT NOW!!! (it’s totes not necessary)
   

 

• Switch off equipment when its not in use – Turn appliances off at the wall plug, rather than leaving them on standby as this can still draw about 20% or more of normal electricity use. (Examples are TVs, music systems, computers, phone chargers etc.) Also turn the geyser off when you go on holiday!!!

 

• Be Kitchen Conscience, (wow, that really isn’t easy to say…..try it ….out loud!)

1. Thaw your meat in the fridge/outside to reduce the use of microwaves and cooking time.
2. Make sure your fridge seals 100%, and a good temperature to keep it on would be around 4 or 5 degrees Celsius.
3. When you are cooking, use the microwave when you can – it uses much less energy than an electric oven. If you use the stove, keep lids on your pots to reduce cooking time.

 

• Air Dry your Clothes! Laziness is not a disability – go outside and hang your clothes, the fresh air will do you good, and look, you are now saving money too!

 

• Use energy-efficient light globes – This is a no-brainer!

• • They typically use about 25%-80% less energy than traditional incandescent light bulbs.
  • They can last 3-25 times longer.

 

There are a few other investment upgrades (all under R1000) you could make to your home to make your electricity bill go down, such as: 

• Install an efficient shower head.
• Insulate the ceiling/roof
• Insulate the geyser
• Install a solar water heater System
  

 

When you are not living alone, most of these efforts are pretty much lost unless you are working together towards a common goal – so have “The Talk” – discuss with your partners, kids, family, friends, whoever is residing with you, the effects of our wastage and come up with ways you can save together:)

 

OK, so now we saving at home people!! How about at work?…… are your companies doing anything to help the electricity crisis?

If not – let’s show them how!

Now I understand that every company has different needs, so there isn’t a one fit, fits all, but there is always something that can be done.

#EternalOptimist remember lol!

 

• Use florescent lighting.Check
• Minimize the use of the air conditioner. On warm days opt to opening windows and blinds.  Check
• Boil the kettle for groups instead of filling, boiling and pouring for one. Check
  
• Cut down on your printing – print double sided if possible. Check
  
• Turn off electronics at the end of the day.Check

So how is your company doing?…. Lets keep going!

The next two tips will cost the Company money initially but will save them in the long run.

• When your company is upgrading their PC’s, suggest they switch to laptops, these use way less electricity than desktops.
• Move IT to the Cloud – Consider getting rid of your computer servers, and instead going with cloud-based systems. No more running multiple servers or cooling of that hot data center is needed. On top of that, more employees could telecommute. According to one survey in 2010, a small business with 100 users could cut its carbon footprint and energy costs by 90% by moving to the cloud.

 

That’s all I have on Electricity but I’m on a roll now so I’m just gonna keep going and throw out some water saving tips too, if you don’t mind!

• Turn off your water when brushing your teeth.
• Fix all water leaks in your home.
• Put a brick in your toilet cistern.
• Run your water over flow pipe into your garden for irrigation

and lastly…

• Shower with your partner! You’re welcome!

 

I thought I would end with some weird and wonderful facts about Electricity:

 

• One bolt of lightning has enough electricity to supply 200 000 average size homes!
• A refrigerator uses less energy than a Playstation 3.
• It is a little known fact that only ten percent of the traditional light bulb is used for actual lighting. The other 90% of the energy creates heat.
• During a hurricane, 50 to 200 trillion watts of heat energy are released. This is the same amount of energy as a 10 megaton nuclear bomb exploding every 20 minutes.
• South Africa was the country with the cheapest electricity in the developed world. That was until the staggering 27.8% tariff increase. According to the Electricity Report & Pricing Survey, Canada is now the cheapest in the world, with South Africa following in second place with a 7% higher electricity tariff than Canada. Italy and Germany on the other have, has the most expensive electricity rates in the world.
• In 1994 only 12,000 schools had electricity, in 2015, approximately 25,000 have access to electricity.
• The percentage of the South African population with access to clean drinking water has increased from 62% in 1994, to 94% in 2013. Access to electricity has increased from 34% in 1994, to 88% in 2012.
• Have you ever wondered why birds sitting on a power line don’t get electrocuted? If a bird sits on just one power line it is safe. However, if the bird touches another line with a wing or a foot, it creates a circuit, causing the electricity to flow through the bird’s body. This results in electrocution.

 

So, lets see if we can all try

A little …..

Until next time 😉