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Save money and energy in the home: Easy English

There are a lot of little ways you can save energy and money throughout your home.
3 min read
Published on 01 Jul, 2020

There a lot of little ways you can save energy throughout your home. We’ve listed seven of the most common ones below.

Computer/laptop/tablet

  • Set your computer or laptop to enter sleep or hibernate mode automatically after it hasn’t been used for a few minutes. This way, if you forget or step away for longer than you thought, you’re still saving energy.
  • Switch off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when you’re not using them as they use a substantial amount of power.
  • Did you know screensavers don’t save energy? It’s best to turn your device’s screen off when you’re no longer using it – or better yet, shut it down and switch it off at the wall.
Woman sitting on stairs with tablet

Dishwasher

  • If you have a dishwasher, use the ‘eco’ setting to lower its energy and water consumption. Wait until it’s full before turning it on.
  • If you happen to have solar panels, use the dishwasher in the middle of the day.

Electric cooktop

  • Use a pan the same size as your hot-point. This ensures the cooktop works efficiently.
  • Remember to put lids on saucepans – the food will cook quicker and at a lower heat, helping you save energy and money.

Entertainment devices

  • Plug your TVs, DVD players and other entertainment devices into a standby power control board. A control board can automatically switch them off for you when they’re not being used.
  • After charging portable devices like smartphones, tablets or laptops, switch their charger off at the wall, as many of them continue to use power – even when a device isn’t plugged in.

Kettle

  • Kettles can use a lot of energy, so only fill it to heat the amount of water you need.
Woman sitting on bed with phone drinking coffee

Toaster oven

  • If you want your food heated well, while only using half the energy of a traditional oven, go with a toaster oven.
  • If you can safely reach the point, turn off at the wall when not in use.

All devices/appliances

  • When buying a new device, choose one with a high Energy Star Rating as it’ll help you save on your power costs in the long run. The more stars, the more energy-efficient.
     

Learn more about saving energy and money with our downloadable Easy English guide.

This article is part of our series highlighting the availability of AGL’s Easy English guides which are designed to assist our culturally and linguistically diverse customers across Australia to have better access to information about their energy accounts.

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