More money for your Christmas break

You've spent hours planning your Christmas break and months saving for your holiday but have you thought about saving on your energy bills while you are away from home?

The Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) says the easiest way to save energy while you are on holiday is turning off appliances at the wall.

Senior Technical Advisor Christian Hoerning points out only switching your appliances off with a remote control means they keep using electricity – microwaves, TVs and DVD players continuously consume electricity on standby.

“If the lights and clocks of an appliance are on, they're using electricity.”

Turning off your heated towel rail is another simple energy saver that’s easily forgotten in the rush to get out the door, Mr Hoerning says.

However he says it’s only worth switching off your hot water cylinder if you are going to be away for a minimum of two weeks.

“The downside is coming back to cold water, which needs to be heated for at least half a day to 60 degrees to kill any bugs.”

Another question Mr Hoerning frequently gets asked is whether people should turn off their fridges when they are away.

“This is a tricky one. Fridges are big electricity guzzlers but most people store cheese, sauces and chutney in their fridge. It’s not going to be worth turning off the fridge if you have to throw out a whole lot of food.’

If you have more than one fridge, you could at least turn one of them off, he says.
Mr Hoerning says if you are leaving a light on to deter burglars, using a timer switch will help minimise the bill.

“These plug straight into the wall and allow you to set what time your lights or appliances turn on and off.”

And Mr Hoerning advises households to use an energy saving light bulb for any lights left on – each energy saving bulb saves up to $20 a year, including the price of the bulb.

Switch if off while on holiday Save over two weeks

Switching appliances like microwaves off at the wall. $4-6 over two weeks

Heated towel rail $5-6
Hot water cylinder (two weeks) Up to $8 (depending on age of cylinder)
One modern fridge Up to $5.00

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