Cut down on your electricity bill
Apart from your geyser, a dishwasher uses a lot of your monthly electricity, but these tips will save you money!
04/08/2019
With an energy crisis looming on the horizon, not many people give any thought to the appliances they use in the home. They simply switch them on and let them run. A dishwasher, with the exception of a hot water geyser, is one of the most expensive appliances to run in a home. It uses a substantial amount of power to heat up the water, and more so if you only use the longest and hottest cycle.
Before you switch on the dishwasher when you leave for work, or after the evening meal, consider that these are peak times and will cost far more than setting a timer to run the dishwasher overnight. I don't have a fancy or latest model dishwasher, but even my model has a delay-timer that lets me run the dishwasher overnight.
Think before you switch on
Eskom, our national power supplier, offers savings when you run appliances during off-peak times. Peak times are when the demand for electricity is at its highest, while off-peak is when demand drops and this is usually late in the evening and through the night.
The demand for electricity continues to grow and even more demand expected in the next five years. With the majority of this increase occurring during peak periods, i.e. from 7 am to 10 am and 6 pm to 8 pm, the cost of running appliances during this period is far more expensive than at other times.
As an incentive to residences, Eskom has introduced Homeflex - peak and off-peak rates that you can take advantage of. With the price of electricity being lower during the off-peak times - and also differing between seasons - it makes a lot of sense to only run your (expensive) appliances during off-peak times to benefit from a lower electricity cost. You can click here to view the Homeflex information and tariff booklet.
Save money on your monthly bill
• Using the Homeflex guidelines lets you schedule laundry days to cut down on costs for washing and drying loads. If you can schedule laundry days for weekends - even better. And try to make use of sunlight to dry your washing rather than a tumble dryer.
• Only use essential appliances during the peak times and make sure all non-essential appliances are switched off.
• Investing in a gas hotplate or hob will drastically cut down your monthly electricity bill and let you cook breakfast, lunch or evening meals for your family. Alternatively, using a microwave is far more efficient than using your oven - it's quicker and uses less energy.
• Convert your entire home to CFL or LED lighting. While incandescent lighting is now obsolete, CFL or LED lighting technology is far cheaper and more efficient than other lighting types.
There are so many other ways to save on your monthly electricity bill and cut down on usage, so think before you switch on!