Power crisis – who cares! Well you should care.
NZ is facing a serious power shortage this winter; our hydro lake levels are low and our gas reserves are running down. And unless we reduce energy consumption by 10% we could all be encountering COMPULSORY power cuts this winter – yes that will mean cold showers girls!!!
Currently we’re only saving a measly 3% so we really need to save more power NOW unless we want to end up freezing our butts off later on!
And every bit of saving counts, so do your bit to save power and help avoid power shortages this winter.
Top 10 ways to save power:
(as recommended by the Winter Power Task Force)
1. Have shorter showers instead of baths and save around 5% on your power bill.
2. Wash your clothes in cold water. Water heating is the biggest single way your home uses power.
3. Use your clothesline to dry clothes as much as possible.
4. Switch off appliances you’re not using at the wall. Appliances waste power on ‘stand by’.
5. Only have the lights on in rooms you’re in.
6. If you have a second fridge or freezer, empty it into your main fridge or freezer and switch it off. Second fridges and freezers are usually older and less efficient types, so waste a lot of power.
7. Fix leaky hot taps. A leaky tap could be dripping away up to 2% of your power bill.
8. Only heat the room you’re in and close your curtains when the sun goes down, keeping in the free warmth from the sun.
9. Turn your heated towel rail off in the morning after your shower, and on again at night. There’s no point heating the towels when there’s no one home.
10. Switch off your computer when you’ve finished using it. Or if you’re away from it for more than 15 minutes, switch off your monitor. The savings are worth it.
Linda
