There are many ways that you can create an energy efficient home to help reduce the cost of household bills and also lower the greenhouse gas emissions from your property.
Some changes are physical items that can be purchased and installed but there are also simple behavioral changes you can make to your everyday life to help reduce your energy use.
Here are some great tips to help you save energy in the home.
Did you know that every extra degree of warmth above 20, adds 10% to your heating bill (which can make up to 30% of your entire energy bill).
In winter set your thermostat between 18°C and 20°C. In summer, Set your air conditioner thermostat between 24°C and 26°C for living areas – every degree lower in summer will increase running costs by around 10%.
Your thermostat should be in the living areas where you spend most of your time.
Sounds simple enough, but dress according to the weather conditions outside – some of the younger members of the household may need reminding! If it’s cold, wear a jumper indoors.
Switching from inefficient electric or gas heating to reverse-cycle split system air conditioning is one of the best choices you can make for your energy efficiency. Split systems can be up to 600% efficient and drastically reduce your electricity bills and household emissions. The Victorian Energy Upgrades program offers rebates to install more efficient heating in your home.
Did you know that heating your water can make up to 25% of your energy bill.
More than half of hot water use is in the bathroom, a third in the laundry, and the rest is used in the kitchen.
Upgrading your water heater from an electric or gas system to an incredibly efficient hot water heat pump is another major choice you can make to reduce both bills and emissions. Heat pumps can be up to 500% efficient and reduce hot water costs by 80%.
You can also save money and energy simply by reducing the amount of hot water you use;
Your kitchen is another major user of energy. Appliances like your fridge, dishwasher, and cooktop/oven are all energy intensive.
Consider upgrading your expensive gas cooktop to an energy-efficient induction cooktop. They use far less energy, cook food faster, and are much safer to use – oh, and they’re super easy to clean!
Insulating your ceiling, walls and floor will help prevent the heat generated by your heater or cool air from your air con from escaping. It’s the most effective way to improve the energy performance and comfort of your home.
Decent insulation can save your up to 40-50% on your home heating and cooling costs.
Draught proofing is one of the easiest DIYs one can do to fix your home of draughts and leaks, making your home more comfortable and energy efficient. Draughts are similar to ventilation, in that both let fresh air into your home. Good ventilation helps reduce condensation and damp and can help cool down a hot house. Draughts, on the other hand, are uncontrolled – they let too much cold air in and waste too much heat.
Draught proofing stops warm air from escaping your home in winter and hot air from entering in summer, saving you money and making your home more comfortable. Up to 25% of winter heat loss from existing houses is caused by air leakage (also known as draughts). In fact 9 out of 10 homes in Victoria have unwanted draughts!
Draughts come into your house through gaps and cracks around doors, windows, exhaust fans, fireplaces and so on. To draught-proof your home you will firstly need to find the draughts.
The Residential Efficiency Scorecard is available across Australia. In the same way as your fridge or dishwasher has a star rating, a scorecard rating shows how much energy your home is using.
A home energy assessment can help identify the areas your home that are contributing to high energy bills and helps point out the improvements you can make.
One of the easiest ways to reduce your costs is to compare the energy offers for your home.
Victorian Energy Compare is a free and independent energy comparison platform which can weigh up different energy retailers for gas, electricity, and solar for your home. This lets you find the best and cheapest deal on your energy.
Installing solar panels on your home lets you generate and consume renewable energy during the day which can drastically reduce your energy bills, and in some cases allow you to get reimbursed every month via feed-in tariffs.
The addition of a household battery system enables you to store any excess solar energy you produce for use during the evening, and even further reduce your reliance on the grid.
You can read more about going solar here.
The most powerful way to reduce your energy bills and personal household emissions is by opting for an all-electric home.
The basis of this is replacing all your inefficient, fossil-fuel reliant appliances with modern electrical ones. Partnered with a personal solar system, this can potentially reduce your bills to $0 and drastically reduce your greenhouse gas emissions.
An all-electric home is a lot easier to achieve than you may think – learn more here.
Now, hopefully, you know that there are multiple small and everyday changes you can make to reduce your household energy usage.
These can reduce both your energy bills and your personal greenhouse gas emissions.
If you are having trouble paying your bills, you can find out what support is available on the energy.vic website.