1. Warming up
The biggest consumer of electricity we have in the home is heating the home. According to Enova, between 50-60% of our electricity consumption goes to heating. But the numbers can fluctuate greatly depending on which home you have.
– It can vary from 30-40 per cent in a well-insulated home, to 70-80 per cent in a large and poorly insulated home, says energy consultant Trond Paasche at Enova to NRK.
And every degree you heat the home with has a lot to say. Trond Paasche explains that if you lower the temperature by just one degree, you can reduce heating costs by around five percent.
– But of course you can’t go around freezing if that happens. Furthermore, all rooms do not need to be equally warm – the hallway does not need to be as warm as the living room, for example. Different temperature zones can save a lot, says Paasche.
2. Hot water
Hot water comes in a clear second place on the list of electricity thieves in the home.
We like to use somewhere between 10-20% of our electricity consumption on hot water. You can easily save a lot of money by implementing a few simple measures when it comes to hot water.
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Halve the time you spend in the shower.
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Avoid filling a bathtub to the brim with hot water.
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Turn down the pressure on the shower.
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Rinse plates and cutlery in cold water before putting them in the dishwasher. Hot water is unnecessary.
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Make sure you always fill the washing machine when washing clothes. It costs a lot to wash half-full machines. Maybe you can halve the number of washes that are run each week?
3. Home electronics
We have a bunch of it. TV, PC, mobile phones, PlayStation, tablets and all other technical gadgets that use electricity.
Please note that several of these have so-called “Stand by mode” or waiting mode. That the TV, PlayStation, home system and PC are in such a mode consumes more electricity than you would think.
Chargers that are left in the outlet also draw electricity as long as they are in the sockets.
A good rule of thumb is therefore to always unplug the charger from the socket after use. Then you also avoid the risk of fire it entails.
4. Underfloor heating
As mentioned earlier, most of our electricity consumption goes to heating. Underfloor heating is a large part of this. Make sure that the heating cables are not placed too high or in rooms that are rarely used.
5. Lighting
In fifth place above what we use the most electricity for is lighting.
Paasche tells NRK that the most important thing you can do to save money here is to replace halogen spotlights with LED lighting.
– LED lighting reduces power consumption by around 80-90 per cent compared to halogen, he explains.
Together with Nettavisen, Enova has created an overview of typical consumption and electricity expenses for households in southern Norway, based on NOK 2.27 per kWh. (Made in December 2021). Note that charging electric vehicles is not included in this list.
