Save electricity: 9 tips on how to reduce your electricity consumption in summer – quickly and easily

Created: 07/19/2022 13:07

By: Andrea Stettner

In the summer, the refrigerator, air conditioning, etc. run at full speed - and that costs you dearly.

With the right tips, you can save a lot of electricity.

Air conditioning, fan, refrigerator - these household appliances make life more comfortable in the summer.

With a pleasantly fresh breeze and a cool drink, the summer heat records in your own apartment are much easier to bear.

But as nice as a cool home may be - your electricity bill shoots up with so much energy consumed.

The power consumption in summer can be reduced with a few tricks.

This not only saves electricity – but also protects your wallet.

Standing in front of the fridge for a long time - and with the door open?

This consumes electricity unnecessarily.

©Panthermedia/Imago

Save electricity: These tips save a lot of money in summer

• Set the heating pump to summer mode:

  Even if the radiators are off in summer, the heating system can still use electricity.

  And that is when the electricity-driven heating pump continues to run.

  “If you can control your heating yourself, then switch it off or switch on summer mode.

  The same applies to the circulation pump in the hot water system,” advises the NRW consumer advice center. 

• Protect the kitchen from the sun's rays:

  If the kitchen heats up at high temperatures, the refrigerator and freezer have to use more energy to maintain the set temperature.

  If you want to save electricity in summer, you should keep the kitchen as cool as possible.

  Avoid direct sunlight by darkening the room with blinds and blinds down.

• Ventilate properly instead of air-conditioning:

  Even forced ventilation can help to banish accumulated heat from the rooms - especially in the heat-stricken attic.

  This saves you the air conditioning, which consumes a lot of electricity.

  However, only ventilate in the cool morning and evening hours and keep windows and doors closed during the day.

  This means that warm air cannot even get inside.

  Darken the rooms to protect against direct sunlight (see above).

• Fan instead of mobile air conditioner:

  If you still need more cooling, use a fan instead of an air conditioner, advises the NRW consumer advice center.

  “In addition to significantly increasing electricity costs, disappointment is often the result: the devices are often overwhelmed, especially in large rooms.

  If you are not dependent on air conditioning for health reasons, you can also use a fan.” This only increases electricity costs by 5 euros a year.

• Leave the dryer off:

  In summer the motto is: clothesline instead of a dryer.

  Older household appliances consume a lot of energy when drying.

  Wet laundry also has a cooling effect if you dry it indoors.

• Using solar power saves electricity:

  Whether on the balcony or the terrace - in summer many devices such as lighting or fountains can be operated with solar power.

  And all for free!

  Tenants who would like to generate their own electricity should think about mini solar systems for the balcony.

• Only open the refrigerator briefly:

  Refrigerators use a lot of electricity to maintain the preset temperature.

  If you want to take something out, you should leave the refrigerator door open for as little time as possible.

  If you can't make up your mind: it's better to close it briefly and then open it again.

  This also applies to clearing away after the bulk purchase.

  "Less energy is consumed if the refrigerator is opened several times in a row than if the door is left open for a short period of time, since less cold escapes this way," advises

  Verbraucherfenster Hessen

  .

  Incidentally, the power consumption of your refrigerator can be reduced immediately with a few tricks.

• Turn on the party fridge only when needed:

  Many households have a second fridge in the basement to cool drinks, appetizers or cakes for summer celebrations.

  Be sure to turn off the device after the party and unplug it from the mains.

  That saves a lot of electricity.

• Pull the plug on summer vacation:

  Household and electronic devices are not needed on vacation.

  Therefore, allow permanent consumers a little time out, such as the TV, stereo system or WLAN router.

  But really pull the plug - because many devices consume a lot of power even in standby mode.

  It's also good for your wallet when it comes to refrigerators and freezers.

  You should defrost your freezer regularly anyway - there's a trick to do it very quickly.

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