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Saving electricity<span> <h2 class="sectHeading">Be energy smart</h2></span> <p>By developing smart energy use habits in your household or business, you can start saving on your electricity bill at no cost.</p> <span> <div class="notification with-heading dark-copy light-blue bg-light-grey"><div class="graphic with-border"> <i class="info fastfact">​​</i></div><div class="desc"><h4>Go solar</h4><p> <b></b>Did you know that installing solar panels and using energy generated by the sun is one of the most efficient ways to save electricity and money in any building? <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/Family%20and%20home/greener-living/saving-electricity-at-home/going-solar"> Find out more about solar energy and how you can get started</a>.</p></div></div></span> <h4>​​​​​​Smarter energy use habits in the home: </h4><ul><li>Dry your laundry outside in the sun, if possible, and try not to use the tumble dryer. On rainy days, use drying racks indoors. </li><li> Replace regular bulbs with energy-saving bulbs (e.g. LEDs use six times less electricity). </li><li>Seal the gaps around your windows and doors to keep heat from escaping and cold drafts from coming in. </li><li>Shower instead of bathing. You will save up to 80% in your water bill and use five times less electricity if you take a short shower instead of bathing. </li><li> Switch off appliances at the wall and pull your phone chargers out from the wall too. You could save up to 6% more electricity by doing this. ​</li><li> Turn the geyser off and only turn it on for an hour or two a day, when required. </li><li> Turn the geyser down to 60°C. Turning your geyser down from 70˚C to 60˚C will see a 5% reduction in your hot water electricity bill. </li><li> Use a stove plate that’s most similar to the size of your pot. An electric stove uses up to 40% of its heat when the pot is too small, which means you waste electricity. If you own an insulation cooker, bring your food to a boil and then place it in your insulation cooker. The retained heat slow-cooks, saving up to 60% on energy.</li><li>Use less hot water. </li><li> Use hot-water bottles instead of electric blankets. </li></ul><h2 class="sectHeading">Invest to save​​​​​​​</h2><p>If you want to make a real difference and save 50% or more of your electricity costs every month, you should invest in energy-efficient equipment like a solar water heater or heat pump, or generate some of your own electricity with a solar photovoltaic system on your roof. These are smart ways you can invest in a sustainable energy future for your family.</p><p>Check out more no-cost, low-cost and invest-to-save options on our <a href="https://savingelectricity.org.za/" target="_blank">saving electricity </a> <i class="icon link-external"></i> site - a resource dedicated to helping you make smarter choices.</p> <span> <div class="infographic bg-font-adjust-bg">​​​​​​​​​ <figure> <img class="responsive" alt="placeholder" src="https://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Inline%20Images/Saving%20Electricity%20At%20Home%20-%20Thumbnail.jpg" /></figure> <figcaption> <p> <span class="infoGraphicSpan">PDF<br>​​<strong>saving electricIty in the home</strong></span></p> <a title="top ways to save electrictity" class="btn dark-blue" href="https://resource.capetown.gov.za/documentcentre/Documents/Graphics%20and%20educational%20material/top_ways_to_save.pdf" target="_blank"><i class="icon download"></i>Download PDF</a> </figcaption> </div></span>​​ <h4> Download our useful guides for more energy-saving advice:</h4><ul><li> <a href="https://savingelectricity.org.za/resources/" target="_blank">A checklist guide for teaching your household about saving electricity </a><i class="icon link-external"></i></li><li> <a href="https://savingelectricity.org.za/resources/" target="_blank">How to upgrade to solar when your electric geyser bursts or fails </a><i class="icon link-external"></i></li></ul><p>If you want to find out more about becoming more energy-efficient, get some more tips from our <a href="https://resource.capetown.gov.za/documentcentre/Documents/Procedures%2c%20guidelines%20and%20regulations/CCT_Smart_Living_Handbook.pdf" target="_blank"> Smart Living Handbook</a>.</p> <span> <div class="notification with-heading dark-copy pink bg-light-grey"><div class="graphic with-border"> <i class="info note">​​​</i> </div><div class="desc"><h4>Load-shedding</h4><p>When power demand exceeds generating capacity, load-shedding may be implemented at short notice. Please visit the load-shedding page to <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/Family%20and%20home/residential-utility-services/residential-electricity-services/load-shedding-and-outages">view the load-shedding schedule and area maps</a> for details of how you may be affected.</p></div></div></span><span> <h2 class="sectHeading">Smart energy strategies for your business​​​​​​</h2> <h4> Better lighting</h4> <ul><li>Turn off non-essential lighting and use natural daylight as much as possible (keeping windows clean lets in more light)</li><li>Install energy-efficient or energy-saving light bulbs such as compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) or light-emitting diodes (LEDs)</li><li>Consider installing motion sensors in areas not used frequently</li><li>Replace conventional ‘exit’ signs and other continuously-lit signage with LED lights</li><li>Make all staff aware of what can (and should) be switched off when not needed</li><li>Upgrade to task lighting, which means putting light where it’s really needed, such as at desks</li></ul> <h4> In the office</h4> <ul><li>Switch equipment off rather than using standby mode</li><li>Unplug all chargers and adapters when not in use (or switch off at the wall)</li><li>Save 10% of your air conditioner’s electricity bill by turning the thermostat down 1 degree in winter and 1 degree up in summer and only use the air-conditioner when necessary</li><li>Laptops use significantly less energy than desktops. Liquid crystal display (LCD) screens are more energy-efficient than the older cathode-ray tube (CRT) screens</li><li>Try avoid printing and photocopying as much as possible by sharing and presenting documents in a digital format</li><li>Photocopy in batches, as less starting up of the copying machine reduces the energy consumption</li><li>Use centralised printers instead of a printer for each desk</li><li>Use rechargeable batteries where possible.<br>When procuring new computers, electrical equipment or appliances, make sure they are energy efficient</li></ul> <h4> In the kitchen and canteen</h4> <ul><li>Make sure that fridges, stoves, microwaves and other appliances are working properly to ensure efficiency</li><li>Always check to see if the seals on the fridge are working, as damaged seals allow the cold air to escape which results in the fridge using more electricity to keep everything cool</li><li>When using a kettle only boil the amount you need, but if there is excess hot water from the kettle then store it in a vacuum flask for later use</li><li>If you still have an urn, replace it with a hydro-boiler, which is much better insulated and provides boiling water throughout the day. Remember to switch off the hydro-boiler at night and over weekends</li></ul></span><span> <div class="notification with-heading dark-copy pink bg-light-grey"><div class="graphic with-border"> <i class="info toptip">​​​</i> </div><div class="desc"><h4>Download our smart office toolkit</h4><p> <b></b>See our <a href="http://www.capetown.gov.za/Work%20and%20business/Greener-business/Saving-electricity-in-the-workplace/Make-your-office-smarter"> Smart Office Toolkit</a> for practical guidelines on how to create a more energy-efficient office and for visual resources like stickers and posters which can be printed and used in your office to create awareness.</p></div></div></span> <h2 class="sectHeading">​​​​​​​​​​City Connect​​​​​​​</h2> <span> <div class="notification with-heading white-copy yellow bg-darker-grey"><div class="graphic">​ <i class="info citycard">​​</i>​</div><div class="desc"><h4>You may also want to:</h4><p> <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/City-Connect/Apply/Municipal-services/Electricity/Apply-for-a-prepaid-electricity-meter">Apply for a prepaid electricity meter</a></p><p> <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/City-Connect/Apply/Municipal-services/Electricity/apply-for-an-upgrade-to-a-new-prepaid-electricity-meter">Upgrade to a new prepaid electricity meter</a></p><p> <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/City-Connect/Apply/Municipal-services/Electricity/Apply-for-an-electricity-connection">Apply for an electricity connection</a></p><p> <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/City-Connect/Apply/Municipal-services/Electricity/apply-for-authorisation-to-install-a-small-scale-embedded-generation-system">Apply for authorisation to install a small-scale embedded generation system</a></p><p> <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/City-Connect/Apply/Municipal-services/Electricity/Apply-for-a-standby-generator">Apply for a standby generator</a></p></div></div></span> <h2 class="sectHeading">​​​​​​​​​​Contact us​​​​​​​</h2><h4> <a href="https://www.capetown.gov.za/Departments/Electricity%20Generation%20and%20Distribution%20Department">Electricity Generation and Distribution Department</a></h4><p> <em>Telephone:<br> <a>0860 103 089</a></em></p><p> <em>Email:<br> <a href="mailto:power@capetown.gov.za"> power@capetown.gov.za</a></em></p>GP0|#cd88d638-20ee-46ee-bb1c-f1b5f013d8aa;L0|#0cd88d638-20ee-46ee-bb1c-f1b5f013d8aa|Saving electricity;GTSet|#ef3a64a2-d764-44bc-9d69-3a63d3fadea1;GPP|#034940d1-0e3a-4366-8246-c524fcee34b2;GPP|#a3964d56-b74d-4d64-95c1-ff381a88a277;GPP|#245ec7aa-a528-4cd3-bcac-597c292db711;GP0|#de38197f-9570-4c83-84cd-942b7877d878;L0|#0de38197f-9570-4c83-84cd-942b7877d878|Saving electricity;GPP|#0245199c-5be3-4af0-937a-b126a226207c;GPP|#39d66b11-2134-4df5-8360-0bc5e66e8f4f;GP0|#677947c3-8e51-4366-9d6c-e35233628402;L0|#0677947c3-8e51-4366-9d6c-e35233628402|Saving electricity;GPP|#9a52d66f-57c1-4cb8-b297-6994dd682ede;GPP|#99fac000-f3ac-4774-9ffd-e5e59a130e21;GPP|#e88ff549-973f-4e3c-a46c-cfbe61bd6a24;GP0|#6fb60427-a876-4a44-9e1b-c49e168b8388;L0|#06fb60427-a876-4a44-9e1b-c49e168b8388|Saving electricity;GPP|#ccd25ffb-04bd-465f-b4e4-e0a88d1cac35;GPP|#d6c1debf-2fe6-4caf-8748-a5126af00c53By making small changes in your household, you can start saving on your electricity bill.0

 

 

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