by Nayab Naseer

Created on: February 26, 2009

Thirty-three ways to reduce electricity consumption at home

1. When constructing or remodeling a house, design large windows so that plenty of natural light and breeze gets inside. This will reduce the need for lights and fans considerably. Remember that daylight and natural air is free while electric lamps and temperature control come at a price.

2. Use compact fluorescent lamps (CFL). Traditional incandescent lights convert only about 10% of the energy to light. The remaining 90% of energy generates heat, which means more work for the air conditioner. A CFL of 25 Watts generates the same amount of light an incandescent light of 100 Watts does, and lasts much longer. If every house in America replaced one of its incandescent light bulbs with a CFL, the amount of energy saved would be equivalent of the energy produced by a large nuclear power plant in one year.

3. LED lights are an even better option than CFL's, for they reduce power consumption by 48%. However, LED lighting is not yet a popular option for domestic use. At present, LED's are suitable for exteriors, parking areas, entrances and the likes.

4. Devices like televisions, computers, home theaters and the likes consume energy even when not in use. In stand-by mode, their power consumption equals that of a 75 to 100 watt bulb running continuously. These appliances even use electricity when switched off.

5. The "sleep" and "hibernate" modes of the computer use less power compared to when the computer is idle. However, turn off and unplug the computer when you would be away for an extended period.

6. Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) monitors consume less electricity than conventional Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) monitors. LCD's take less space and are more elegant in any case.

7. Turn the UPS and other power back-ups off when not needed, especially when you would be away. For them to provide energy when required, they suck energy when in standby mode.

8. Power supplies for charging cell phones, PDA's, digital cameras, cordless tools and other personal gadgets all consume electricity. Keeping them plugged when not is use drains away a considerable amount of electricity.

9. One of the main energy guzzlers is the air-conditioner. Limit the use of air-conditioner and use fans wherever possible

10. Consider switching over to less costly gas based heating and cooling options for the home

11. If using air-conditioner, use artificial ceilings and reduce the height of the ceiling, so that the air-conditioner will have a lesser area

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