SAVING TIPS

WATER

ENERGY (ELECTRICITY)

Save Water – Water is Life

PROTECT OUR SCARCE RESOURCES

“We need water to grow our economy and to alleviate poverty in South Africa.

Let’s conserve our water and use it with care”

DON’T BE A DRIP – SAVE EVERY DROP

WATER-SAVING TIPS

In and around the House

• Turn off taps while washing, brushing your teeth or shaving
• Showering instead of bathing can save up to 400 litres a week
• If you bath, share the water (remember, only 100mm deep)
• Use low-flow showerheads and water efficient washing machines
• Kettles should be filled with just enough water for your needs, not to the brim
• Don’t overfill containers like cooking pots
• Immediately repair or report leaks (dripping taps can waste 200 litres a day)
• Heat water in a kettle rather than running the hot-water tap
• Rinse dishes in a basin and use the water in the garden
• Educate your family and children to save water
• Flush toilets sparingly, and flush with bath water

 The Swimming Pool

• collect rainwater in tanks, divert rainwater to pool
• use a pool blanket & save on evaporation
• recycle your backwash water to a tank

 The 3 “R’s”

• Reduce the amount of water usage
• Reuse water as much as you can
• Repair leaks as soon as you detect them

SAVING AT HOME

Lighting

Switch off the lights when not in use and when leaving the room.

• Use low energy lamps for exterior lighting with timer or light sensor for switching.
• If the sun is shining make the most of natural sunlight by opening your curtains to allow the sun to go in.
• Use energy saving bulbs (fluorescent lights), they could save you a huge amount of money and they last longer compared to the incandescent lights.

Comparison on a 100watt bulb and an 11watt bulb

Let us say you are using a 100watt and 11watt bulb for 10 hours in 30 days on a 42c per unit, bear in mind 1kwt is equivalent to 1000watts.

100watts x 10hrs x 30 days x 42c =      and      11watts x 10hrs x 30 days x 42c =

0.1kwh x 300 x 42c =                                      0.01kwh x 300 x 42c =

30 x 42c = R12.60                                           3.3 x 42c = R1.39

Electric Stove

• Clean stove plates reflectors.
• Match the size of the pot to the size of the stove plates.
• Remember to close the lid of the pots when you cook to conserve heat and energy.
• Try to boil only water you need instead of boiling the full pot or kettle every time.
• Soak beans, samp and other related dry food overnight to save time, money and several hours of electricity use.
• Always try to use appropriate cooking utensils when cooking (i.e. use pots and pans with a flat bottom, they will consume up to 50% less electricity)

Geyser

• Insulate your geyser by wrapping newspapers, old blankets or other insulating materials (Geyser blanket) around it and hot water pipes.
• Reduce the temperature of your geyser to around 55 degrees, so that you don’t need to add much cold water when you shower or do the dishes.
• It saves energy to shower than to bath.
• Switch off your geyser when not in use.

Heating and cooling

• Use the right energy for the right purpose (i.e. use a heater for space heating rather than hot plates or stove ovens).
• Use thermostatically controlled oil heater to regulate the room temperature.
• Insulate the ceiling to improve the regulation of the room temperature.
• Close the windows and doors when the heater is on and save money.
• Keep room doors closed so that air conditioners or heaters do not have to work too hard.
• Wear clothing that is appropriate for the weather to save switching on or air conditioner or heaters.
• Enjoy a comfortable indoor climate both summer and winter by ventilating your room properly on a daily basis.  Remember to switch off your heater, fan or air conditioner while ventilating.

Refrigerator

• Refrigerators with freezers on top are more efficient than side by side.
• Clean your refrigerator condenser coil at least once a year.
• Ensure that the seals of the refrigerator doors are in good condition and that the door closes properly.
• Close the door every time that you take things out of the fridge and also check that it seals properly.

Household appliances

• Turn off all stand by modes every time you leave the house or before going to bed.
• Do all your ironing at the same time.
• Skip pre-wash cycle if your clothes are not particularly dirty.
• If you are making one cup of tea, boil only enough water for one cup.
• Use a toaster, electric grills, slow cookers, electric pots and bottle warmers as they require less energy than they stove.

In the Community

• Report streetlights, high mast lights that are burning during the day to NMBM Electricity Directorate (041 506 5595).

At work

• Turn off the photocopier when you leave – photocopier left on overnight wastes enough energy to make about 1 600 copies!  Switch off at the wall standby power loads at night, like Television sets and Personal Computers.  Turn off your computer monitor – a monitor left on overnight wastes enough energy to laser print about 800 A4 pages!  By turning off your monitor energy consumption can be reduced by 50%.  Enable power save mode on computers to reduce electricity consumption by turning itself off after a period of inactivity.  Switch lights off at night or when not in the office and on sunny days exploit natural light.  Use of motion sensor for lights instead of leaving the lights burning during the night.  Leaving the lights on in an empty office overnight wastes enough energy to make about 100 cups of coffee!  Do not install multiple lights on a single switch.  Use low energy lamps for exterior lights.  Ensure that light fittings are cleaned regularly so that more light is emitted.  Office air conditioning should be on a timer so that it switches off at night and weekends.  Save 10% of an air conditioner electricity bill by turning the thermostat down 1º in winter and up 1º in summer.
• Make sure you switch off the water boilers as they consumer much energy.
• Remove all cell phone chargers immediately after use.
• Switch off equipment that are not in use.  They waste electricity and generate heat that has to be cooled by the fan drive system when cooling.

Power alerts

The purpose of Power Alert is to inform residential households and the general public on the status of the National electricity demand, as well as the demand in their region.  Power Alert informs the general public of the risk of power interruptions in their region and asks residential households to switch certain appliances off to avoid power interruptions.

• A Green Power Alert indicates that the electricity supply is sufficient to cater for the demand.
• An Orange Power Alert indicates that the electricity demand is increasing.
• A Red Power Alert warns of eminent power failures.
• A Brown Power Alert indicates that interruptions are affecting certain regions and that it will spread out to other regions.

Cosumption of Electrical Appliances

Below are some tables on average consumptions of household appliances.

ADVISE FOR CREDIT METER USERS

Record the meter readings each day at a definite time and observe if some days produce a suddenly higher daily consumption that others (e.g. a rise from say, 20 units per day to 40 units per day).  You may be able to determine which of your electrical appliances could be causing the high consumption. E.g.

Loadshedding Definition

When there is not enough electricity available to meet the demand for all Eskom’s customers, it could be necessary to interrupt supply to certain areas.  This is called loadshedding.

Guidelines for Loadshedding

Before Loadshedding

• When you are warned about a pre-scheduled loadshedding, boil water and keep in a thermos flask for hot drinks, prepare meals beforehand and use thermal covers to keep the food warm.
• Make sure you have torches, batteries, candles and matches, and put them somewhere where they can be easily found in the dark.  It is a good idea to keep a torch (with fresh batteries) by your bedside at all times.
• To ensure that you will be able to get into (and out of) your home, release automatic electric garage door mechanisms and switch electric security gates to manual operation.
• Invest in a small LP gas lamp, as they provide quality lighting for a large area, and in a gas-heating ring for essential cooking.
• If you have a fireplace, make sure that you have adequate wood or charcoal for a fire.  If not, invest in a gas heater.  Not only will this come in handy during loadshedding, but also gas is far more effective for space heating that electricity.
• Make sure that your cell phone’s battery is fully charged at all times.  Not only is this a good idea regardless of the circumstances, but also when landline telecommunications are interrupted due to power outages, you will need your cell phone to reach the outside world.
• Adequate fuel in your vehicle is another precaution, given that pumps at petrol stations cannot be operated during power outages.
• The same goes for ATM’s, therefore some cash stored in a safe place at home is a good idea.

During Loadshedding

• From a security point of view, ensure that all doors and windows are locked should your alarm system not have a back-up power supply.
• During the loadshedding period, it is best to make sure that all lights and appliances are switched off and, where applicable, unplugged.  Not only will this avoid a disharmony of sound and light when the power returns, but it will also protect your appliances against possible power surges while supply is being restored.  It is wise, though, to leave a single light switch in the “on” position to alert you when the power returns.
• Refrain from opening the refrigerator door during the loadshedding, as this will allow the cold air to escape.  By keeping the door closed, a power outage of up to four hours will not cause food to spoil in the fridge, while a freezer should keep frozen food safe for at least a day.  It is a good idea to have snacks available that do not need refrigeration.

After Loadshedding

• Once the power has been restored, do not switch all your appliances on at once, as the power supply might sill be slightly unstable.  Only switch on those you need immediately.
• It is a good idea to switch appliances on and off systematically to make sure that no damage was caused by the power interruption, and that the equipment is in good working order.
• Remember to reset electronic clocks, especially your bed side alarm, and other timer that could have been disturbed, such as the pool pump or sprinkler system.

Conclusion

Let us avoid or reduce the need for Loadshedding by consuming less energy more on morning and evening peak periods.  Which are from 07H00 – 10H00 and 18H00 – 21H00.  We should also continue to save energy, as the little difference we make will make a big difference in our Country. For more information click here.