How to cut your power bill in half without turning anything off
A year ago, Ian Williamson was used to being charged about $1000 a month for his household's electricity.
Now, he is paying about $7 a day – and he hasn't changed anything about the way his family of three uses power.
Williamson's house is almost 500 sqm, with three hot-water cylinders and underfloor heating. "It was always going to be at the bigger end of bills."
He had accepted that somewhere between $800 and $1000 a month from Mercury was about average. Then he discovered Flick – a power company that passes on wholesale spot prices to customers, plus a margin.
That model means that Williamson's household usage pattern, with about 50 per cent of power used during off-peak times such as early mornings, evenings and weekends, resulted in significant savings.
"Often I go in [to the app] just to have a look and see the spot price is 7.3 or 7.5c (per kwh] – the cheapest we used to get before was 20c," he said. "There's not much of a downside to saving that sort of money. I've saved more than $3000 in the first year."
He said he had not yet experienced a wholesale price spike as a Flick customer but was not locked into a contract.
Power companies say there are a number of ways that customers can cut their power bills without having to change the way they use their appliances. Here are some of them.
1. Shop around
The simplest way to save power is to move to a cheaper supplier. Check out a site such as Powerswitch to see whether you are getting a good deal. As well as price, consider other factors such as the business model – Flick and Paua to the People offer variable wholesale pricing. Electric Kiwi offers a free off-peak "hour of power" each day to customers.
If you are worried about future price rises, you might benefit from a fixed-term deal where you lock in a price. Flick and Paua to the People customers are exposed to any fluctuations in the wholesale price, which means it is hard to budget precisely.
But Flick chief executive Steve O'Connor said many people were paying a significant premium for that certainty, compared to what else was on offer. "You insure your house and car against disaster but do you need to insure your power bill? You're paying a large premium for that."
He said the average saving for Flick customers over the past year had been $489.
2. Make use of night rates
If you are with a provider that offers cheaper rates at night, something as simple as setting your appliances on timers can make a difference.
You can buy a simple timer from a hardware shop or something such as a Belkin WeMo switch, which allows you to control your devices from your mobile.
While you're at it, put a timer on your heated towel rail. If you only run it for the couple of hours a day when you actually need it, it will save you about $100 a year.
3. Get more efficient
Using an efficient showerhead will mean you can have showers that are just as long but do not use as much hot water – which is a big component of power bills.
"To check the flow rate of your shower, put a 10 litre bucket under the shower - if it fills in less than a minute at normal showering temperature, your showerhead is wasting water. An efficient showerhead has a flow rate of nine litres per minute, or less. Even reducing the flow rate by one litre per minute could save a household of three around $80 per year," said EECA Energywise technical expert Christian Hoerning.
LED lightbulbs are another way to cut your bill without having to turn off any lights. This can save $100 a year or more in most houses.
Mercury also recommends buying energy-efficient appliances. It said people could save money by replacing a fridge that was more than 10 years old with a newer, more efficient model. An energy-efficient TV can use up to 25 per cent less energy.
4. Cut out standby
When you switch an appliance off, turn it right off instead of to standby. Hoerning said: "Major culprits are home entertainment appliances, like TVs, stereos, game consoles and computer equipment. Plug them all into multi-plug boards so they can all be turned off properly at the same time. Turn off other appliances like whiteware at the wall too."
Appliances on standby add 10 per cent to your bills – but turning them off instead is painless.
Do you agree with these tips? Let us know in the comments.
Written by Susan Edmunds. First appeared on Stuff.co.nz.