Ten things to do today

Standby power
If you're not using it - switch it off. It's a simple rule but many of us fail to turn off the dozens of electrical devices around the house when they are not required. While devices such as TVs, stereos and mobile phone chargers are plugged in on stand-by they are silently wasting up to 10 per cent of your annual power bill.
Cutting down on this waste can be as simple as doing an audit of the appliances in your home and deciding which needs to be switched on permanently (such as the fridge) and which can be turned off until required. One trick is to group appliances together that can be switched off and plug them into a single power board. That way they can all be switched off together.

Light bulbs
Conventional incandescent light bulbs are very inefficient, converting more than 90 per cent of their energy into useless heat. And the halogen downlights so beloved of kitchen designers everywhere are scarcely any better in environmental terms.
By changing all the incandescent bulbs around the house to the widely available compact fluorescent lights, the average home can slash its light bill by 75 per cent, with a corresponding reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

Solving the problem of halogen downlights is a little more complex. The ideal replacement for energy-guzzling downlights are LED (light-emitting diode) lamps but the technology is still developing and it may be a couple of years before LEDs are powerful enough to be a true downlight replacement. Infrared-coated halogen bulbs are a reasonable compromise and are much more efficient than conventional halogens - however, they are also a lot more expensive.


One simple thing almost anyone can do to cut emissions caused by driving is to choose to leave the car at home. For very short journeys, walking may be enough while for longer trips and even the daily commute, a bicycle may do the trick.
Shower efficiently
On average, 20 per cent of the water used on the home goes down the plughole in the bathroom. A water-efficient showerhead will cut the amount of water used by about 50 per cent and also trim the amount of electricity used to heat the water. Modern showerheads are designed to restrict water flow to about 7 litres a minute while still delivering an invigorating shower.
Sydney Water runs a program called WaterFix under which a plumber will come to your house and for $22 will install a low-flow showerhead plus devices to reduce the flow through your taps.

Wash clothes in cold water

According to the Australian Greenhouse Office, the average washing machine in a year produces about 90kg of greenhouse gases while heating up the water to do the family load adds another 475kg of greenhouse gasses. The motto: wash clothes in cold water. Detergent, plus the efficient action of modern washing machines means a cold wash will do the job just as well as using hot water.
Dry clothes naturally
Used three times a week, the average clothes drier will add about $100 to your annual electricity bill and also generate about 500kg of greenhouse gases. It's pretty easy to get into the habit of relying on an electric drier but pegging out your clothes on a washing line the old-fashioned way is a very smart environmental choice. Obviously, it won't be possible with every load - especially when it's raining - but it makes sense to use the clothesline wherever possible. It's also kinder to your clothes.
Use air conditioners efficiently
If you're going to use an air conditioner in your home, there are things you can do to make sure it works as efficiently as possible and uses as little energy as possible. AGL recommends a summer setting of between 24 and 27 degrees. Every 1 degree cooler will add between 10 and 15 per cent to your energy costs. AGL also recommends turning off the air conditioner for about 15 minutes each hour, as well as only cooling the rooms that you use - other rooms can be sealed off.
Check your fridge
After your hot water service, the fridge is the biggest energy consumer in the home as it hums away in the kitchen all day, every day. So it's wise to make sure it is working as efficiently as possible and that the door seals are in good order. A dirty, poorly fitting or worn out door seal should be replaced.
The way you use the fridge - for instance by putting cold items back into the fridge immediately - also has a big effect on efficiency. According to the Australian Greenhouse Office, cooling a two-litre drink bottle back down from room temperature generates 10 times as much greenhouse gas as does opening the fridge door.

Get rid of the beer fridge

And while on the topic of fridges, the second or "beer" fridge that lurks in the uninsulated garage of many Australian households is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. It's often an old, inefficient appliance that gets used only intermittently yet stays on all the time, steadily consuming power. If you don't really need a second fridge it's worth considering getting rid of it. Until recently the State Government operated a "fridge buyback" scheme that collected and recycled more than 3500 fridges. However, the scheme is not operating at the moment but may start up again in future. You can register you interest at their website
Walk don't drive

One simple thing almost anyone can do to cut emissions caused by driving is to choose to leave the car at home. For very short journeys, walking may be enough while for longer trips and even the daily commute, a bicycle may do the trick.
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