Saving Electricity in the Home:
some advice on how to better use electrical energy
di Vincenzo Di Dato
bio-architect
According to the latest figures supplied by ENEL (Italian Ente Nazionale per l'Energia Elettrica), after Sweden, the United States and Japan and before France, the region of Italy with the greatest consumption of electrical energy is the Valle d'Aosta. Indeed, it appears that every year, each inhabitant of the Valle d'Aosta uses 6,893 kWh, approximately 60% more than the national average which is about 4,730 kWh/year.
According to estimates of the Ecology Authority of this region, it is possible in theory to effect an average savings of somewhere between 20% and 25% of the total in the home alone, thus obtaining a greater energy availability equal to that produced by a power station supplying 25.30 GWh/ year. It is obvious that this consumption, for the consumer, means an expense of some importance on the family budget.
What can one do to make the electric bill lighter. There are three important possible areas of intervention in our homes to pay less and, at the same time, maintain an adequate level of comfort: lighting, electrical water-heater and home appliances. There are also other elements which can considerably influence consumptions, such as electric stoves and air-conditioning units.
Though less frequently used, they however deserve special attention. Here is some advice on how to save on electric lights. The incandescent light bulbs we all normally have in the house are not an example of efficiency. In order to consume up to five times less electricity in the areas where artificial lighting is most often used, we can replace them with compact, high-efficiency fluorescent light bulbs, possibly electronically supplied.
Their cost, greater than that of incandescent bulbs, is recovered in the first 4,000 hours of use. Considering they have a life span of about 10,000 hours, compared with the 1,000 hours of filament bulbs, the savings is evident. Their quality in recent years has considerably improved and it is possible to choose tones and hues of light for every environment.
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In collaboration with Ecosportello per il Risparmio Energetico e la Bioarchitettura Regione Autonoma Valle d'Aosta E-mail: ravdaec@tin.it |
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