The Cost of Running Appliances in Your Home
The Cost of Running Appliances in Your Home https://jntelectrical.com.au/wp-content/uploads/tv.jpg 1000 667 JNT Electrical https://jntelectrical.com.au/wp-content/uploads/tv.jpgThe Cost of Running Appliances in Your Home
What Are Your Appliances Costing You?
Singling out your appliances and evaluating energy use is the perfect way to decipher which appliances are costing you the most. It’s a simple, yet effective way to determine where you can be saving money and if solar power will be beneficial to your home.
It’s likely that each room in your home features an appliance or two, and you might be shocked to find out where your energy consumption is highest and lowest.
Highest Consuming Appliances:
TV
Household TVs are becoming bigger and better for viewing, but certainly no better for our wallets or the environment. While TVs are made more efficiently than they used to be, they still require a lot of power.
Fridge / Freezer
No major surprises here given the household fridge and freezer are constantly running. It pays to take special consideration to efficiency ratings when purchasing your next fridge.
Hot Water
This is highly dependant on a number of things including how many showers are taken, the temperature of each shower, the size of your hot water system and the amount of washing you do. Hot water can account for a large chunk of your power bill.
Heating and Cooling Systems
Cooling and heating your home can be incredibly costly and there are several steps you can take to reduce your consumption and save on your power bill. Learn more about how to cool your home more efficiently during summer here.
Lowest Consuming Appliances:
Digital Devices
Household digital devices are constantly increasing, however individually they are relatively cheap to run.
Clothes Dryer
Often deemed as the largest consumer, a clothes dryer actually uses far less energy than suspected.
Dishwasher
A dishwasher uses significantly less water than hand washing in the sink and its energy consumption is low enough to warrant the switch.
How to Calculate the Running Cost of Your Appliances
There are a few straightforward steps you can follow to calculate the cost of your household appliances. Complete the following:
- Determine how much you pay per unit of electricity. This varies depending on your chosen provider.
- Calculate the input power the appliance uses in kilowatts (kW). This is usually marked on the appliance itself or in the instruction manual.
- To estimate the running cost, simply multiply the input power by the price of your electricity per unit.
For example, if you’re paying 25 cents per kWh and your air conditioner has an input power of 3000 watts (3kW), your equation would look like this – 3kW x 25c per kWh = 75 cents per hour.
Tips for Reducing Energy Consumption
- When purchasing new appliances, be sure to review the energy and water rating labels when making your decision.
- Turn your TV off at the wall when you’re not watching. The energy consumed during standby mode can add up!
- Save dishwasher and washing machine loads for peak solar hours if you have solar power.
Assess your next move
Once it’s clear where energy consumption is highest in your home, you can start to understand whether solar power would be beneficial for you. Are some of your highest consuming appliances used during peak solar hours? Would the cost of your power bill reduce significantly if your fridge and freezer were able to run off renewable energy for a large portion of the day?
If you need more information or you’d like to speak to one of our expert team members, get in touch today. We can provide assistance with eco-improvements for your home, as well as all solar installation and maintenance enquiries.
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