ENERGY EFFICIENCY

What is energy efficiency? I'm glad you asked! As humans, we all use energy every minute of every day. We need energy for heating, cooling, cooking, lighting, working, playing, transport and entertainment. However, we all tend to use more energy than we need. If we squander energy resources, it can cost us money and have an adverse effect on Planet Earth. "Energy efficiency" means using just enough energy for the essentials and avoiding waste.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY TIPS

Whether at home, the office, business, or at school, we can follow simple guidelines to improve our energy efficiency. Here are some energy efficiency guidelines worth considering:

· Use compact fluorescent lamps, low voltage lamps or LED lights rather than incandescent (tungsten) lamps.

· Turn off electrical appliances at the wall rather than leaving them in standby.

· Limit the use of air conditioning. Don't set the target temperature at 22 degrees Celsius all year round. Make it 25 degrees Celsius in summer and 20 degrees Celsius in winter.

· Consider double-glazed windows. Double-glazed windows have two sheets of glass separated by an air gap. This gap is sometimes filled with argon - an inert gas. Double-glazed windows result in less heat gain in the summer and less heat loss in the winter.

· Halve your time in the shower or halve the water pressure. Saving water saves energy. This could save 50 litres of water per day.

· Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth. This could save 60 litres of water per day.

· Use the half-flush button when flushing the toilet instead of the full-flush button. This could save 30 litres of water per day.

· Investigate the possibility of a smaller, more fuel efficient car (e.g. hybrid, diesel or LPG).