1. Use eco friendly Christmas lights
LED Christmas lights consume 90% less power than traditional lights and you could use solar lights for your garden decorations, reducing the need for all those extension leads through windows.
2. Install a timer for your lights
Show off your lights when people can see them. Installing a light timer in your office or home allows you to turn lights on and off at specific times, meaning lights won’t be left on unnecessarily to drive up the electric bill.
3. Check how much running your Christmas lights may cost you
Our Energy Usage Calculator can help give you a better idea of how much you're spending on each appliance. All you need is the appliance's energy rating (either in Watts or Kilowatts) and an idea of how long you use it for.
4. Check your tariff times
Guernsey Electricity offers a number of different electricity tariffs, which are designed to fit the needs of different customers. Take our Super Economy 12 tariff for example. It’s divided into two rates.
The lower rate is made available to customers for a 12-hour period each day. The 12 low hour hours of low rate is made up of a 10-hour period overnight and a 2-hour period during the day. The normal rate applies for the remaining 12 hours. For more information on Guernsey Electricity tariffs email us at customer.accounts@electricity.gg
5. Turn down the thermostat
Make use of all the extra bodies in the room when you have friends or family over and turn down your heating. Turning it down by just one degree could take up to 10% off your bill.
6. Wash those Christmas jumpers at 30
Washing machines use 40% less energy when washing at 30 degrees than washing at higher temperatures? Keep that in mind next time you wash your warm sweaters and you could save on your electricity bills.
7. Cooking up Christmas
Roasting the Turkey, boiling the brussels- it all costs money. If you’re on Christmas dinner duty, reduce costs by placing several dishes in the oven at the same time, or using your microwave for smaller pieces. Keep the lids on your cooking pots can also shorten the cooking time, hence lower energy usage.
8. Use the dishwasher efficiently
Consider filling the dishwasher but waiting to use the dishwasher until the times of your lower rate. Make sure you wait until its full and use the economy program.
9. Switch off standby after the christmas movies
After you’ve fallen asleep in front of the next Christmas special, turn your TV off standby mode. According to the UK’s Energy Saving Trust, homeowners can save around £30 a year by turning appliances off standby mode.
If you're feeling really efficient, you could even unplug your TV from the socket when it's not being used to save yourself even more. Before turning appliances off at the plug, check the instructions if you’re not sure. Some digital TV and satellite recorders may need to remain plugged in to track programmes that you want to record for example.
