Increasing our energy savings does not only consist of opting for solar energy, but once you have a photovoltaic installation, it is time to improve efficiency and optimise your consumption.
To do this, we have to include changes in our consumption habits that allow us to save on our electricity bill and use the energy necessary for our home.
Today we show you 7 tips to use solar energy efficiently and increase economic savings.
Tips on how to use the energy from solar panels efficiently and save money
1. Install LED bulbs
Modern LEDs use almost as much electricity as they consume to produce light.
These bulbs need about a tenth of the electricity to produce the same amount of light. And because they do not generate much heat, their life span is extended.
There are different light temperatures and even colours to choose from.
2. Turn off stand-by mode
Many electrical devices (household appliances, televisions, computers, video game consoles, etc.) also consume electricity when they are not in use and are kept on stand-by.
Considering the number of electrical devices in a standard household, stand-by consumption can really add up. For that reason, these devices should be unplugged when not in use.
A trick: add a power strip and, once you switch off this component, all devices will no longer be in stand-by mode.
3. Electrically heated water
Turn your hot water systems into electric boilers.
The temperature can be adjusted to whatever you want. The demand for hot water is more or less the same throughout the year.
During the late spring and summer seasons, that demand can be met entirely by solar energy.
A combination with hot water heat pumps is a great option or, in other words, aerothermics with solar panels.
4. Run high-consumption devices during the day
The household appliances with the highest electricity demand are the refrigerator, washing machine and dryer.
These can easily be equipped with timer switches so that they run during the hours of peak solar radiation. That is, when the solar panels are producing a lot of energy.
We also give you a series of tips on how to reduce their consumption.
Remember that 52% of the cost of the electricity bill is spent on these devices.
5. Do your gardening with solar electricity
Solar electricity yields are highest between spring and autumn.
This is also the time of year when the garden requires the most work. You can run electric lawn mowers, hedge trimmers or lighting with electricity from your photovoltaic installation.
If you have a solar battery, you can use it to power LED lights in your garden when sunlight is no longer available.
6. Increase efficiency with energy storage
Without energy storage, you can use around 50-75% maximum on summer days when we enjoy more hours of sunshine during the day for your home’s electricity consumption.
A battery can easily bring you up to almost 100% energy savings.
7. Switch to electric mobility
Almost as useful as solar batteries can be electric vehicles, of any size: from a lawnmower to an electric scooter.
They all contain lithium batteries that can be conveniently charged with solar electricity.
To charge an electric car, you need a charging point inside your garage or covered parking space. In this article you have all the information you need about electric car chargers.
Take note of these tips and use them to reduce your electricity bill.
Solar energy allows us to increase energy efficiency in our homes and save money by reducing our electricity bills by at least 50%.
However, it is important to focus on our consumption habits in order to use this renewable source efficiently and make responsible use of energy.
Most importantly, a solar expert will tell you the benefits and what you would need depending on your energy consumption.
We’re not here to beat around the bush. We like to cut to the chase and tell you what you can achieve.
If you don’t need it, we’ll tell you that too.
