Right at the heart of many households is the kitchen. Used for preparing and serving meals, socialising, and housework. This hub of activity based in the kitchen leads to lots of energy being used up - in order for the household to run smoothly. To make your household more energy efficient, a great place to start is becoming aware of your energy consumption levels, and then afterwards you will be able to take some simple steps to reduce them. This can also save you money!
Firstly, you need to take a look at reducing your consumption of your everyday kitchen electrical appliances - this will be essential in reducing your kitchens energy consumption. Not only the everyday items we now consider necessities - such as the freezer, fridge and oven, but also more specialised appliances such as a juicer, electric blender or dishwasher. The appliances we use every day to speed up the cooking and cleaning processes.
Oven
Did you know? Every time you open the oven door to check if your food is ready, the temperature of the oven drops by 25 degrees. As to be expected, this means a longer cooking time and more energy than is really needed. To make your cooking more efficient, cook all the different parts of your meal at the same time in the oven - this will reduce the total amount of time your oven is heated. Finally, if you have an electric oven, remember, even after turning it off, your oven will remain at the same temperature for 10 mins. So why not turn it off 10 minutes before you need to?
Freezers and Fridges
Fridges and freezers are the two largest energy consumers in the kitchen - so it's important to take steps to make their energy use more efficient. Firstly, check the doors are tightly shut - otherwise a lot of energy is being wasted in maintaining the temperature. Secondly, as soon as it comes to replacing your appliances, be sure to choose Energy Saving Recommended models - they typically use 60% less energy than a standard model.
Washing Machines
When doing your next load of washing, bear in mind that often you can get exactly the same results at a lower temperature (e.g. 30 degrees instead of 40). Many washing powders and liquids are even, thanks to technological advancements, optimised to be used at 30 degrees. This ensures less energy is used per cycle. It is important also to ensure you have a full load when starting a cycle.
Other Kitchen Appliances
Appliances such as tumbledryers, blenders or dishwashers are, while being "nice-to-haves", not essential. It is true that we now rely upon them to accomplish every-day tasks - but it is important to remember the impact they have on our energy consumption. Try and wash-up by hand, for example, rather than using the dishwasher, or dry clothes outside rather than using the tumble dryer.
Firstly, you need to take a look at reducing your consumption of your everyday kitchen electrical appliances - this will be essential in reducing your kitchens energy consumption. Not only the everyday items we now consider necessities - such as the freezer, fridge and oven, but also more specialised appliances such as a juicer, electric blender or dishwasher. The appliances we use every day to speed up the cooking and cleaning processes.
Oven
Did you know? Every time you open the oven door to check if your food is ready, the temperature of the oven drops by 25 degrees. As to be expected, this means a longer cooking time and more energy than is really needed. To make your cooking more efficient, cook all the different parts of your meal at the same time in the oven - this will reduce the total amount of time your oven is heated. Finally, if you have an electric oven, remember, even after turning it off, your oven will remain at the same temperature for 10 mins. So why not turn it off 10 minutes before you need to?
Freezers and Fridges
Fridges and freezers are the two largest energy consumers in the kitchen - so it's important to take steps to make their energy use more efficient. Firstly, check the doors are tightly shut - otherwise a lot of energy is being wasted in maintaining the temperature. Secondly, as soon as it comes to replacing your appliances, be sure to choose Energy Saving Recommended models - they typically use 60% less energy than a standard model.
Washing Machines
When doing your next load of washing, bear in mind that often you can get exactly the same results at a lower temperature (e.g. 30 degrees instead of 40). Many washing powders and liquids are even, thanks to technological advancements, optimised to be used at 30 degrees. This ensures less energy is used per cycle. It is important also to ensure you have a full load when starting a cycle.
Other Kitchen Appliances
Appliances such as tumbledryers, blenders or dishwashers are, while being "nice-to-haves", not essential. It is true that we now rely upon them to accomplish every-day tasks - but it is important to remember the impact they have on our energy consumption. Try and wash-up by hand, for example, rather than using the dishwasher, or dry clothes outside rather than using the tumble dryer.
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