Energy efficiency can be a part of your daily living 25.06.2002

Every home, from a 19th-Century terrace to a state-of-the-art apartment, can cut energy usage and save hundreds of dollars annually.

There are many ways you can save precious energy. New homes now have built-in energy efficiency - wall, floor and ceiling insulation, energy-efficient appliances and correct positioning create warmer homes in winter and cooler homes in summer. Becton is committed to building energy-efficient homes and is an industry leader through its participation in Sustainable Energy Victoria's First Rate energy rating scheme.

The First Rate Scheme operates just like the star rating that exists for domestic appliances. The less energy used by a home, the higher the rating. Becton's Classic Residences Brighton has a minimum four-star rating for every home. Some even boast the maximum five-star rating.

No matter what style of home you live in, there are many ways you can reduce energy consumption. Often small things send energy bills and emissions soaring - lights left on unnecessarily, oven seals not working, fridges used inefficiently and heating run unnecessarily.

Start by doing your own home energy audit. Check every room for draughts that may be letting warm air out in winter and hot air in during warmer weather. Replace door and window seals and you could save hundreds of dollars over just a few years in heating and cooling costs. Take a look at the thermostat on your hot water heater. Adjust it down a few degrees for big savings (it's also safer for children). Check that your hot water heaters relief valve is not leaking excessively. Clean your light fittings and replace globes with fluorescent lighting or compact fluorescent lamps in areas where lights are on for more than four hours a day.

Your home energy check shouldn't overlook dripping house and garden taps and cisterns. A tap losing one drop each second can add an extra 10 per cent to an average household water bill, so replace any worn washers.

Check your appliances to see if they could be unnecessarily adding to your energy bill. Worn seals on a fridge or freezer can be detected by placing a $10 note between the door seal and the unit. If it falls away or can be easily removed, it's time to replace the seals or adjust the door. Oven seals don't last forever, so check them as well. Fridges and freezers operate most efficiently when filled to two-thirds for a fridge and three-quarters for a freezer.

In the laundry, check the lint filter on your clothes dryer. It should be cleaned after every use, as a blocked filter makes a dryer consume more electricity. Switch to cold-water loads in your washing machine and never operate it when it's half-full. Try using shorter cycles to save water and electricity.

You can be energy-smart with just a few adjustments to the way you do things at home. If you have ducted heating, try turning the thermostat down a few degrees. In just a few months you will have saved tonnes of greenhouse emissions and quite a few dollars as well. Teach children from an early age to pull on a jumper and socks rather than turn up the heating. Close curtains to keep heat in, and harness winter sunshine to dry clothes and warm your house by a few degrees. Hang wet clothes on a drying rack a safe distance from heating vents to reduce your reliance on a clothes dryer. Install an overhead drying rack in your laundry for added drying space.

In the kitchen, use a microwave oven where possible for faster cooking. When using a conventional oven, cook a couple of meals at the one time and store them in the freezer. And don't keep opening and closing the oven door when cooking. You reduce the temperature in an oven by about 15 degrees every time you open the oven door. Use smaller appliances such as a toaster rather than an oven grill - it uses seven times more energy than a toaster. Your dishwasher will work just as well on a shorter cycle if you quickly rinse dishes first. When packing the fridge after a supermarket shop, do it in one hit. Opening and closing the fridge door repeatedly is a big energy-waster.

When it's time to replace household appliances such as fridges, air conditioners, washing machines and dryers, always buy five or six-star Galaxy Energy Award winners. If all Australian households used these appliances, we would save an estimated $850 each annually on household energy costs. The planet would also be spared six million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions entering the atmosphere each year.

For more information on energy-smart living, phone 1300 363 744 for your nearest Sustainable Energy Advisory Centre.