How to reduce energy consumption

With the daylight hours lengthening, it is now the season when you can feel the arrival of spring.

In Japan, the cherry blossoms have already finished blooming, but in the UK they are in full bloom in turn from late March to early May, and you can see many different types of cherry blossoms in various parts of London.

Spring is recognised as the start of a new school year in Japan, but in the UK, unlike Japan, spring is known as the season for cleaning, and the term 'spring cleaning' even exists.

With the 80% rise in utility bills that began in October 2022 having a major impact on ordinary households, many people consider the EPC figures when choosing a property, but it is not widely known that you can save money on utility bills by cleaning in your daily life.

Here are eight simple money-saving tips you can do yourself.

Why not try them out during the spring cleaning season?

1. Remove limescale from electric kettles

Limescale caused by hard water is a headache for many people living in the UK. It is not possible to remove a lot of scale at once, so using a spray to prevent it in your daily routine can save you money on the electricity used to heat your water.

2. Clear away oven trays

Leaving unneeded oven trays in the unit and starting the cooking process will obstruct the air flow in the oven and, besides uneven cooking, will consume excessive amounts of electricity. Unused trays should be cleared away before switching on the unit.

3. Cleaning the condenser coils at the back of the fridge and freezer

Dust build-up on the coils can increase the energy power by up to 25%, so vacuum them at least twice a year and remove fine dust with a brush.

4. Create space behind refrigerators and freezers

If your fridge/freezer is too close to a wall, you can save power by creating a little space and allowing air to pass through, making it easier for the coils mentioned in 3 to cool.

5. Defrost the freezer

If you leave ice building up in the freezer, it will require a lot more energy than usual to cool the food, as the ice acts as insulation.

Use defrost spray regularly to remove accumulated ice and help your freezer cool using less energy.

6. Make good use of microwave ovens, pressure cookers and air fryers

As they are cheaper to run than ovens, appliances can be used to cook food using less energy. Consider other cooking methods, especially when using a slow cooker, as it will be used continuously for many hours.

7. Not recommend to use a Quick wash option in dishwashers and washing machines

Although it is not widely known, the quick wash option in dishwashers and washing machines does not save money. Simply reducing the number of times they are used once a week can save around £16 per year per year. It is recommended that you wash your clothes by hand, especially with regard to dishwashers, as they are expensive to maintain.

8. Know the Eco-problem of dishwashers and washing machines

Eco-problem for dishwashers and washing machines are the cheapest to run and, in particular, setting the dishwasher to the Eco-problem setting when using it is said to save around 30% of energy.