There are many ways to save energy, but some of them are more effective than others. Some strategies are backed by science and definitively work towards energy conservation. Other strategies that we hear about are myths—unrealistic or even energy wasting instead of saving.
Most of us feel some pressure to be energy-efficient and to switch up our lives and our energy usage to methods that both save us money and reduce our carbon consumption. That could mean anything from living closer to work to eating less meat to comparing utility providers to find companies that prioritize renewable energy sources.
Not all energy conservation methods are created equal, however. Read on further to find out which energy-saving myths are not as effective as we thought.
What Do We Mean by Energy Conservation?
Using less energy to accomplish the same goal is known as “energy conservation.” We need to do this to ensure our survival and lessen our impact on the planet. When we use less electricity, gas and other sources of energy, we leave less of an environmental impact and save money on our monthly energy bills through energy conservation.
Furthermore, energy conservation can aid in the decrease of air pollution caused by the combustion of fossil fuels to produce power. The importance of energy efficiency cannot be overstated in terms of ensuring a future for future generations.
9 Energy-Saving Myths That Increase Energy Use Instead of Saving It
Here are some of the top tips that have been said to save energy. Here, too, are the reasons why they do not work as well as they are said to.
Appliances do not use electricity if you turn them off.
Even if you simply turn off your appliances, leaving the plugs in the wall still draws energy, even if the appliance is not turned on.
You can also use smart plugs. These plugs can also help save energy, as the plug can be set to cut off electricity to an appliance.
CFL bulbs are more efficient than LEDs.
Since governments started pushing for people to use energy-saving bulbs, there have been two main options available: compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFL) and light-emitting diodes (LEDs).
In LED bulbs, the bulb produces light when energy passes through a semiconductor that produces visible light through electroluminescence. The CFL, on the other hand, has two electrodes that have a gas tube that is coated with phosphor.
LED bulbs last longer than CFLs or other light bulbs. They also do not need to warm up first before fully shining their brightest.
Putting your laptop to sleep saves more energy than turning it off.
This doesn’t save any battery life; instead, the battery runs down while in sleep mode and still draws electricity if the charger is plugged into the wall.
Instead, turn off your computer or laptop so you’re not using energy when you don’t need it. Even in sleep mode, your computer or laptop will still use energy to keep programs working while it waits to be used again.
Setting your thermostat higher will help heat your home quicker.
Setting your thermostat higher than the temperature you want doesn’t mean that it will heat your home any quicker.
To monitor the amount of energy used, you can choose a thermostat that can be programmed to help regulate your heating system.
Closing vents to unused rooms saves electricity.
Instead of allowing heat to flow through vents, closing vents only adds to the air pressure instead. This means that the same amount of heated or cooled air will still be flowing through the house.
Using a ceiling fan to cool down an empty room.
Switching on a ceiling fan in an empty room only shifts the air around instead of cooling down a heated room.
Only the people in the room will feel the cold air if the ceiling fan is on. Having it on while no one is present only wastes electricity and can also be forgotten about if nobody remembers to switch it off overnight or for long periods.
Using electric heaters is better than using central heating.
Although electric heaters are small and can be moved to any space in the house that needs heating, they do use more electricity than a central heating system, and they might need more time to heat up a much larger area.
Hand-washing dishes uses less hot water than using a dishwasher.
It does sound like using a dishwasher would take more hot water than would be used by hand-washing. However, every time you wash or rinse utensils, you have to fill up the sink, and that means engaging the hot water heater more frequently.
A dishwasher reduces the number of times you do dishes as it has more space to accommodate a huge load of dishes at once, and you do not need to clean out the sink and add more water for another load of dishes to be done.
Fans consume more power than air conditioners.
Since air conditioners require electricity to cool the air and remove humidity in addition to circulating the air, their power consumption is often higher than that of fans.
The exact amount of energy used is determined by variables such as the appliance’s size, its temperature settings and the user’s typical patterns of operation.
The cost of running an air conditioner for the same period of time as a fan may be higher because air conditioners are less energy efficient.
Conclusion
These energy saving myths might sound as though they work, but they have a long-term negative effect on your bill and increase the amount of electricity that you are using.
During the UK energy crisis, the best option is to stick to the tried-and-true tactics for energy conservation. This means making changes in your electricity usage and finding energy-efficient versions of the appliances and gadgets you use most.
There are several significant upsides to energy efficiency, from financial savings to fewer negative effects on the environment. People can conserve energy by doing simple things like switching to equipment that uses less energy, adjusting thermostats and turning off lights when they leave a room.
Feature image: Eprism Studio; Image 1: Steve Johnson
