Five Power-Saving Myths Busted

Load shedding is a reality, and we have been told that it’s here to stay for most of 2015. Eskom needs to balance the scales and supply enough electricity to meet our needs. But we can also have a part in this by trying to save power as much as we can.

Here are some common power-saving myths that have been busted…

1. Turning the geyser off and on uses more power that simply leaving it on

TRUTH: Switching your geyser off and on again won’t actually save power overall, however it will help Eskom reduce demand during crucial periods.

To reheat the water to its set temperature, a geyser uses no more power than if it had just stayed switched on.

2. I have a geyser blanket, so I don’t need to switch my geyser off

TRUTH: A geyser blanket does help reduce heat loss and therefore can lead to small power savings, but you still need to switch off your geyser during peak times in order to help reduce demand.

3. Switching lights and appliances off and on uses more power than just leaving them on

TRUTH: Turning a light or an appliance on can lead to a small surge in power usage, but this is smaller than the amount of electricity needed to keep it on when it is not being used.

4. It uses less energy to leave my heater on, than to heat my room again

TRUTH: The fact is it takes less energy to warm up your room than leaving your heater on for long periods of time. Rather wear warm clothes or use a hot water bottle than to keep a heater on.

5. Setting the air conditioner to its lowest temperate will cool a room quicker

TRUTH: This won’t make your room cooler any quicker; it will just use much more power because the air con will be on for longer. The same goes for using an air con to heat a room.

6. Putting my TV or electrical devices on standby mode is the same as switching it off

TRUTH: Even on standby mode, an electrical appliance still draws power. Rather just switch it off completely or unplug it from the way.

Load shedding is basically the result of bad planning and poor management, however we still need to do our part and try to save power. We don’t want load shedding to carry on for the rest of our lives!

Off Grid provides backup power solutions that are both affordable and seamless to run; when the power goes out you are not inconvenienced and can continue to run your business, watch TV, surf the internet and all without worrying about when it’s coming back on again.