The bathroom is one of the areas of the house where we use the most energy. From power showers and electric razors to extractor fans and residential water heaters, there are lots of opportunities to improve your green credentials and reduce energy consumption. In addition, it’s also a great idea to address any plumbing issues like a water line repair or a water damage restoration immediately. Here are six tips that will help you save energy in your bathroom.
1. Choose new lights
Clearly one of the key ways to improve your energy efficiency is to change the bulbs. Many of us now use energy efficient bulbs around our homes and it’s worth doing the same in your bathroom. For example, you can change from a standard bulb to an LED light in your bathroom – not only will the energy efficiency of these bulbs help you save on your electricity bill, the bulbs also need replacing less frequently which will save you money in the long term.
2. Make common sense changes
It’s common for people to want to make energy saving changes around their house, and it’s probably the case that there are already things you do at home to be more energy efficient. But it’s surprising to think that a large proportion of people don’t apply these changes to their bathroom. For example, turning the light off is something that many people do out of habit in other rooms but completely forget to do in their bathroom.
Additionally, it’s always a smart idea to unplug any appliances with leads in the bathroom that you’re not using. In fact, aside from the fact that this will save energy, it will also reduce the risk of electrocution from dropping a live electrical item in water. In addition, it’s also a smart idea to install an energy-efficient tankless water heater.
3. Upgrade to an energy efficient shower head
The amount of water you use affects your energy efficiency too – so it’s important to find ways to reduce the amount of wasted water in your bathroom. Many older showerhead models have flow rates of around 2.5 gallons per minute or more. Switching to a modern alternative can reduce that number by half. One of the major advantages of new showerheads is that they are able to more successfully maintain pressure and they won’t sacrifice water flow for efficiency.
4. And do the same for your taps
Additionally, it’s worth noting that even if you have already switched to a higher efficiency shower head, you could do the same for the taps in your bathroom as well. There are a wide of range of styles of taps which can be easily transformed into highly water efficiency models that reduce water period. In fact, the cost of installing these taps in your bathroom will soon be paid off by the savings that you will make on your energy and water bills.
5. Use the extractor fan only when needed
One of the major challenges with the bathroom is what to do with the humidity created by the hot water from your shower or bath. One thing that many people opt for is the use of an extractor fan. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with this, but it means that some people will get into a routine where they use their extractor fan at all times when they are in the bathroom – some even have the light switch wired so that the extractor fan turns on when the light does. Using the extractor fan when there is no need for it is simply a waste of energy. It’s always a better idea to remove the wiring that switches on the fan with the light and only put it on when it’s needed. You can always open a window instead.
6. Only use a hair dryer when it’s necessary
Here’s another case where people can save money and energy simply by working to necessity. Many of us absentmindedly switch on a hair dryer after a shower or bath, but often there is no need to. When you’re not stretched on time you can simply let your hair dry naturally – only use that hair dryer when you really have to.
