Electricity prices have risen sharply and will continue to do so. The Swiss Federal Electricity Commission ElCom expects electricity prices to rise by 27 percent in 2023 for a typical household consuming 4,500 kilowatt hours of electricity. As a result, the electricity bill for this household will rise from 954 to 1,215 CHF per year. Prices and price increases vary by grid operator, depending on its own production and purchasing strategy. With our electricity-saving tips for the kitchen, bathroom, living room, bedroom, home office, laundry room, basement and Smart Home, you can reduce your energy consumption without having to give up anything.
Tip 1: Improve energy efficiency
A lot of energy for heating, hot water and electricity is lost through the building envelope. This is especially true for older houses. Most heat escapes through the exterior walls, the roof and the windows. Energy-efficient renovation lowers energy costs: on the one hand, you save money in the long term because you use less energy for heating; on the other hand, price surcharges or long, cold winters are less of a burden on your budget. The energy-saving potential with a new heating system, new windows and better exterior insulation is on average 60 percent.
Heat less. One degree cooler lowers your energy consumption by five to six percent. At night and when you are not at home, you can additionally lower the temperatures.
If curtains hang over the radiators or furniture stands in front of them, this impedes the heat exchange. For example, do not place the sofa closer than 30 centimeters to the radiator and do not use radiator coverings at all. This saves up to 12 percent energy.
LED lamps consume up to 90 percent less electricity than light bulbs or halogen lamps.
Switch off electrical appliances and consumer electronics that you do not need. Even in stand-by mode, they consume electricity. Connect the devices via a power strip, then you only have to pull out one plug to disconnect all devices from the grid.
If you cross-ventilate or push-ventilate briefly, less heat is lost. In winter, five minutes in the morning and five minutes in the evening are enough to exchange the air. If you tilt ventilate for longer, only a little air is exchanged and the walls around the windows cool down.
Close room doors, especially between heated and unheated rooms such as the hallway, basement or attic. This reduces energy consumption by up to five percent.
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Save electricity in the kitchen
In the kitchen, you can save a lot of electricity with simple measures:
Oven
Forgo preheating, use all the energy and put the casserole, roast or pizza in the oven while it's still cold.
Use the convection function, turn off the oven earlier and use the residual heat to finish baking, cooking or gratinating. This saves about 15 percent energy.
Bake in a dark or black baking pan, this shortens the baking time and thus saves electricity.
Reheat food in a skillet or microwave oven, which uses seven times less electricity than reheating in the oven.
Open the oven door only when necessary.
Dishwasher
Do not start the dishwasher until it is full. Modern dishwashers are so efficient that washing by hand consumes more energy.
Put heavily soiled cutlery and dishes in the bottom drawer.
Try the Eco program or low temperatures (45 to 55 degrees). This is usually enough, even without pre-rinsing. Short programs require more water and electricity.
Stove
Cook with double-walled pots and pans with flat bottoms that are the right size for the stovetop or cooktop. Energy-efficient induction stoves do not generate residual heat, so you should continue cooking at the lowest setting from the boiling point.
Place the lid on the pot, cook on as low a setting as possible, and use the residual heat to finish cooking.
Heat water in the kettle and transfer the hot or boiling water to the saucepan or pan.
Fill the pot with only as much water as necessary and cook with the lid on. This way you save a quarter of the energy.
Pressure stove, egg stove, microwave, rice stove and kettle are more energy efficient than cooking or heating in a pan.
There are many ways to save money in the kitchen, for example, cooking with double-walled pots and lids.
Fridge and freezer
Set the temperature from 5 to 7 degrees (in the middle of the fridge). A difference of 2 degrees, for example 6 instead of 4 degrees, saves up to 12 percent electricity.
Never leave the door open for any length of time. Make sure that the door closes airtight and check its seal regularly for cracks or brittle spots.
Defrost frozen food in the fridge. In this way you use the cold to cool the fridge, and the fridge has to do less and uses less electricity.
Let warm food cool outside before putting it in the fridge, otherwise the temperature inside will rise and the fridge will have to do more and consume more electricity.
Defrost the freezer compartment if a layer of ice forms. Even a layer of ice only five millimeters thick increases electricity consumption by a third.
Save electricity in the bathroom
Turn down the temperature. Instead of 22 to 24 degrees, 21 degrees (level 3) in the bathroom is enough if you dress warmly immediately after bathing or showering.
Showering requires only one-third as much hot water as bathing.
Replace the normal shower head with an energy-saving shower head and add a jet regulator to the faucet. This way you will use less hot water.
Replace a two-handle faucet with a single-lever faucet that regulates water flow much more efficiently. Save up to 50 percent energy with modern water-saving nozzles.
Do not set the instantaneous water heater too hot. If you turn the faucet to full hot, the temperature should be just right.
Set the thermostat to level 3: 21 degrees room temperature is enough in the bathroom
Save electricity in the living room
Turn down the temperature. In the living room, 19 degrees (level 3) is enough instead of 21 or more degrees when you put on a sweater. In the bedroom it may be even a few degrees cooler, that is healthy.
Reduce the screen resolution when watching TV or streaming.
Download music you listen to regularly instead of streaming it every time.
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Save electricity in the bedroom
Turn down the temperature. In the bedroom, 16 to 18 degrees (level 2) is sufficient. One degree cooler saves four percent electricity. You also sleep better in a cooler bedroom.
Save electricity in the home office
Laptops generally consume less electricity than desktops.
However, an external keyboard, monitor and mouse increase the consumption.
Close programs that run in the background and that you do not need.
A multifunction device is more energy efficient than a printer, a copier, and a scanner.
A video conference with audio consumes less power than one with audio and video.
Save electricity in the laundry room
Fill the washing drum completely.
Do not use the prewash.
Washing at 20 or 30 degrees uses 70 percent less electricity than washing at 60 degrees.
The energy-saving program is more efficient than the short programs.
The harder you spin the laundry, the faster it dries.
Dry laundry outside in the summer or, as long as the air doesn't get too humid, inside the house or apartment.
However, as soon as you heat, you should dry the clothes in the dryer ("iron dry").
Clean the lint filter regularly, preferably after each drying cycle. A full sieve impairs air circulation and prolongs drying time. If your tumble dryer has automatic lint compression, you do not need to clean the sieve as often.
You should also clean the filters of heat pump dryers regularly. At the latest when the dryer takes longer than usual to dry your laundry.
If you wash your laundry at 20 or 30 degrees instead of 60, you reduce energy consumption by more than two-thirds.
Save electricity in the basement
Freezers are big power guzzlers. Therefore, be sure to pay attention to energy efficiency. If you put the freezer in a cool place, it will consume less electricity.
Set the hot water boiler to 60 degrees and descale it regularly. Switch it off when you are absent for a longer period of time, for example during your vacations.
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Save electricity in the Smart Home
With simple digital thermostats, you can set the temperature to the exact degree and control it with a schedule. If you want to spend a little more, you can operate the thermostat with your smartphone. And with a smart home system, you can integrate and control various components, for example, opening sensors for windows or a wall thermostat.
Smart plugs allow you to switch electrical appliances off and on again using your smartphone. Some smart plugs even notice when a device switches to standby mode and switch it off automatically. They also display the power consumption of individual devices. This allows you to identify the biggest power guzzlers in your household.
Temperature sensors measure the room temperature and adjust it automatically. For example, when the sun warms the air in the room, the heating system reduces its heat production as if by magic.
With the energy calculator, you can check the energy efficiency class of your house or apartment and simulate how an energy renovation will affect energy consumption, heating costs and CO2 emissions. With facade insulation, new windows and a heat pump, for example, you can save up to 60 percent energy and a lot of money. The energy calculator analyzes the savings potential, calculates the investment costs and takes subsidies into account. In our partner network, you'll find certified experts who can renovate your property to improve its energy efficiency.
