Throughout the apartment
Proper ventilation
Let the air in briefly and vigorously every day with the windows wide open. Intermittent ventilation ensures that the air in the room is exchanged, but furniture and walls retain the heat. A tilted window is quickly forgotten and thus cools the rooms down a lot.
Turn off the light
People often light rooms when no one is actually in them. Therefore, turn on the light only in the places and at the time where it is really necessary.
Multiple plug with power off button
The annual energy consumption of standby devices is 4-10% of the total amount of energy consumed. By using a multiple plug with power off function, you can easily reduce the energy consumption.
Less heating
If you lower the temperature by two to three degrees to 19 or 20 degrees you can save 10-20% heating energy.
In the kitchen
Use the preheating phase of the oven
If you already use the preheating phase during baking, you can save up to 20% energy. In many recipes it is recommended to preheat the oven so that the baking time is correct. But it is not necessary. Some recipes already take this into account, too.
No hot food in the refrigerator
If there is a serving left over from lunch, let it cool completely before putting it in the refrigerator. The refrigerator needs to compensate for the sudden heat in the compartment with increased cooling. That consumes electricity. Defrost frozen food overnight in the refrigerator and use the coldness of the frozen food. This saves electricity
Kettle instead of pot
Use a kettle to boil water and fill it only with the amount of water needed. One liter of unused water per day adds up to 25 kg of CO2 per year.
Depending on the type of stove and type of pots, turn down the temperature in time
Use the residual heat of the stove tops when cooking. Turn off the electric stove about 5 minutes earlier. The residual heat is usually enough to continue heating pans and pots for a while.
In the bathroom
Take a shower instead of a bath
Take a short shower instead of a bath. On average, you use 15-20 liters of hot water per minute. A normal bathtub holds about 150 liters. Limit shower time to 3-7 minutes. A cool shower is also healthier than showering or bathing too hot.
Washing laundry properly
Load the machine as full as possible. Only at maximum load the applied energy of the washing machine is used in the best possible way. The pre-wash program is not necessary. As a general rule, you should not wash clothes too often to preserve their longevity. You can also turn down the temperature a little when washing: 30 or 40 degrees is often times sufficient - please use ECO programm.
Tumble dryer
A tumble dryer is rarely really necessary. Almost all apartment complexes have drying rooms for laundry, and air-drying on the balcony is also possible both in summer and winter. Your clothes will also thank you if you opt against using the dryer.
Cold water for washing hands
When washing hands for 30 seconds, almost 3 liters of water come rushing through the faucet. However, warm water requires far more energy than cold water. If you wash your hands carefully with soap, however, water temperature has no effect on cleanliness.
In the bedroom
Temperature for optimal sleep
The optimal temperature for our respiratory system is 18 °C. In the bedroom, however, 16 - 17 °C is perfectly sufficient. The lower room temperature not only saves energy, but also protects the mucous membranes and has a positive effect on the quality of sleep.
