Of a typical household’s electricity consumption, 30 -50% is consumed by a hot water geyser, making it your main consideration to reduce consumption, and in turn, your electricity bill.
Turn your geyser down below 60ºC
By reducing the temperature, you’re still ensured a hot shower. You just won’t need as much cold water to regulate the heat.
Shower instead of bath
On average, bathing uses a massive 80 litres of water, while showering requires a mere 35. Obviously this depends on how deep you run your bath and how long you shower for.
Change your showerhead to an aerated showerhead
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation developed a simple “air shower” device which, when retrofitted to existing showerheads, fills the water droplets with a tiny bubble of air. The result is the shower feels just as wet and just as strong as before, but now uses much less water.
Install a geyser blanket
A geyser blanket is an additional layer of insulation that is wrapped around the geyser. Most products on the market typically consist of a 50mm layer of glass fibre insulation with a reflective foil sheeting cover on one side. However, the thicker the insulation is, the better it works (100-150mm is not much more expensive but it is twice or three times as effective).
Install a Solar Water-heating system
Installing a solar water heater at home can reduce the costs of heating water by up to 70%. Solar heating also benefits electricity consumption. A 150 litre solar water heater means that 4.5kWh/day of electricity is not required. Over a year this means that nearly two tons less of carbon dioxide emissions are released into the atmosphere. It is a more costly exercise than the other suggestions, but Eskom offers attractive rebates to homeowners who go this route.
The Phantom Forest Team