As of: March 8, 2024, 9:00 a.m
By: Andreas Schmid
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The clocks will be changed at the end of March: does this save energy and electricity?
© IMAGO/Future Image//angle of view (montage)
Does the time change save electricity and energy?
According to a professor, there is an effect.
In the interview he explains whether summer or winter time would be better.
It's that time again on Easter weekend: the time change.
Daylight saving time begins on March 31st and the clocks are set forward one hour accordingly.
In October there will be a switch back to “normal” Central European Time (CET), also known as winter time.
Turning the hands every six months is a tradition.
Changing the time is supposed to save energy
The time change in its current form has been around since 1980. And there was also a brief change from winter to summer time in 1916 and 1940.
The idea behind all these time changes: save energy.
Daylight saving time meant there was one hour more daylight - meaning one hour less energy consumption with artificial light.
At least in theory.
The trigger was first the two world wars and then the oil crisis in the 1980s.
But does changing the time really save electricity and energy?
Professor Korbinian von Blanckenburg took a closer look at this question.
He researches economics at the Ostwestfalen-Lippe University of Technology and conducted a study on electricity savings in private households.
He was able to notice differences depending on summer or winter time, as he explains in the interview.
Changing the time saves electricity
Mr. von Blanckenburg, does the time change have an impact on electricity consumption?
Yes, we found that by switching to daylight saving time, private households actually use less electricity than they would if the switch were not made.
Why is that?
Private households use most electricity in the evening, i.e. after work.
In the morning, however, electricity consumption is relatively constant all year round.
When making breakfast, the toaster or the coffee machine are used either way.
It doesn't matter if it's brighter or not.
The lighting energy is hardly significant.
Instead, leisure activities have a greater effect.
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In what way?
People stay outside longer when it is light longer.
If you switch to summer time, it will be bright for an hour longer in the evening and you will actually use less electricity.
You go for another walk around the lake or sit on the terrace instead of turning on the TV.
How much electricity does this actually save?
According to our calculations, in Germany it is 0.8 percent of annual electricity consumption.
This effect is not particularly large, but 0.8 percent is at least 600 to 700 million euros at current electricity prices.
Now you can of course ask yourself whether this small saving justifies the costs of the time change.
There are many studies that look at the negative effects of the change on people.
Abolition of the time change: winter or summer time?
The EU actually wants to abolish the time change.
When should it become permanent from an energy policy perspective?
According to our calculations, if summer time is extended to the whole year, households will save around 1.3 percent on electricity compared to year-round winter time.
So summer time in winter would have an additional effect of around 0.5 percentage points.
You are explicitly talking about private households.
Does that mean the results cannot be transferred to open-plan offices and machine halls?
Leisure behavior is crucial.
But we do know that lighting energy no longer plays a major role.
This is mainly due to the energy-saving LED lighting.
With summer time all year round, it would be light later in the morning.
But the lights in the offices are switched on anyway and, in my opinion, do not have that much of an impact on the overall electricity savings.
What you can look at is the topic of heating.
That means?
This is an important topic because if it is dark for longer in the morning, that also means that it is colder for longer in the morning.
Cold and brightness are related.
This means that you would actually need more heating in the morning during summer time all year round because it is dark for longer and therefore cold for a little longer.
However, you obviously need less heating in the evening when it is warmer for longer.
But we haven't investigated that.
Does the time change save energy?
Federal Environment Agency says: “hardly”
The Federal Environment Agency writes on the topic of heating.
“Although the time change in summer means that the lights are actually turned on less often in the evenings, in spring and autumn there is also more heating in the morning hours.
These cancel each other out." The federal authority continues: "How much energy is actually saved by switching to summer time cannot be precisely quantified because: The change leads to less energy in one place and more energy in another higher consumption.”
Overall, however, one could say: “On balance, the time change hardly saves you any energy.” Private households should therefore save energy in other ways, for example by heating less.
Because: “Heating is by far the largest energy consumer and CO₂ emitter in the household,” it says.
According to the Federal Environment Agency, it is unclear how much energy the time change will save for the economy.
“We do not know any reliable information or quantitative data regarding the impact of the time change on the economy.”