Electricity bills can be shocking – and with winter coming, we’ll spend more money on heating.
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Regional energy co-ordinator Lauren Zell held a pop-up energy shop at the Guyra Library yesterday to explain how people could reduce their energy costs.
She is visiting towns throughout New England as part of a NSW government and local council initiative.
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“Everyone’s power bills are a concern at the moment,” she said.
That’s why the government released a new Energy Affordability Package in November worth $112 million to help households and small and large businesses reduce costs on electricity and gas bills. The package includes appliance replacement programs and energy saving upgrades.
Other measures include rebates on electricity bills, for low income households, Family Tax Benefit recipients, or medical reasons; half-price fridges for pensioners, health care card, and concession holders; and 40% off more energy-efficient televisions.
For more information on the NSW government’s power to save programs and how to reduce your bills, visit https://powertosave.nsw.gov.au/
“You need to double check you do actually have everything that is available to you,” Lauren said.
“The other big thing is to triple check that you're getting the best rate on your power bills.”
She recommends www.energymadeeasy.gov.au, a government website which compares all the different energy retailers, including solar and gas.
Lauren also had plenty of tips for saving energy.
"Guyra is a cold climate," she said. "The big thing here is making sure your building envelope is as efficient as possible."
She recommended using door snakes and thick curtains to insulate the house.
“Even small gaps in the wall can cost more to run heaters,” she said. “You don't want to lose that. You're putting a dollar, two dollars, into running that heater for a couple of hours, you want to maximise the money you've put into that heater.
“Think about how you can envelop the room your heater is running in. Go to your materials store and put a basic curtain across the hallway. Zone off bathrooms and laundries. You’re only in there briefly. Why are you paying for heating for that room when you're in it maybe 20 minutes a day? Put seals on bathroom and laundry doors internally, and zone that room off.”
A household of appliances can add up to $350 a year. The biggest energy users in NSW homes are hot water systems, space heating or cooling systems, and fridges. Most homes have their highest energy use in the early morning, late afternoon, and evening.
You can use less energy by replacing old light bulbs with LEDs, and not keeping appliances on stand-by. In other words: turn off appliances at the wall!
"It's a very easy and free way to bring your power bill right down," Lauren said.
To check your power usage, you can borrow a Save Power Kit from the Guyra library. The kit’s Power-Mate will can tell you how much your TV, fridge, or other appliance costs you to run an hour.
"It's a great little kit," Lauren said. "I can't promote those enough; they're just wonderful! Borrow it for a couple of weeks, and check all your appliances."
Stores like Big W also sell energy cost meters for $15 to $20, which tell you what you’re paying per kilowatt hour.
“Look that up on the power bill,” Lauren recommended, “and it will tell you this kettle sitting on standby is costing you 50 cents a day.”
For people who have trouble turning things off at the power point, you can get remote control power outlets, so you can stand there and turn all your power off with a remote control at night. The little gadgets are $25 to $30 from a hardware shop, and control four powerpoints.
Renewable energy is also a great way to save money. Guyra is an energy hub, with one of the best wind speeds in the state, and good solar irradiation.
“Many people in Guyra have solar power – so before you even look at putting on battery storage, look at how you can gobble up your solar power during the day,” Lauren said.
Use electricity timers to shift your loads to use solar, rather than buying back from the grid.
“Run your dishwasher at lunchtime instead of at nighttime, or your washing machine at 11 o’clock in the morning, if you are able to do that, or in the afternoon, and hang it out when you get home,” Lauren advised.
You can also turn an old, “dumb” appliance into a smart one – so no need to throw away a reliable washing machine. Simply get an electricity timer for $10 from a local hardware shop, and you can set your washing machine to come on in the middle of the day.
Most people on the grid buy a mix of renewables, because of what the region generates – but if you want to make sure you’re getting 100% renewables, you can buy green power as well. You will pay a little bit more on your power bill, and a certain percentage of your electricity is guaranteed to be purchased from renewable sources.
"It might not mean you've got green electrons coming into your house,” Lauren said, “but it's good if you rent an apartment and you can't put solar on the roof, for example, or a small wind turbine in your backyard.”
For more information about saving energy, visit the Guyra Library or the Hub. The energy pop-up shop will visit Uralla, Quirindi, Tenterfield, and Bingara next.
For more energy saving tips, visit the NSW government’s “cut your power bills” page.