As a holiday home guest, you pay your electricity and heat after your stay, and in these unusual times, prices for electricity can vary widely. Nevertheless, you can still enjoy a warm and cosy stay in your holiday home during autumn and winter—you just have to pay a little extra attention to your consumption of electricity and heat.
To help you, we have put together a few general energy-saving tips that everyone should keep in mind to ensure the security of the power supply and, in particular, to keep your energy bill reasonable at the end of your stay.
1) Turn down the heat
Take an extra warm sweater and a blanket with you. It’s so cosy to curl up on the sofa under a nice blanket.
2) Limit your use of hot water
Take slightly shorter showers than you are used to and try to turn the hot water down a little—they say that a cold dip is healthy!
3) Wash clothes at a lower temperature
Most clothes can be washed clean at temperatures as low as 30°C, with the exception of underwear and towels, etc., which must be washed at 60°C to rid them of bacteria. After washing, hang your clothes outside to dry instead of using the dryer.
4) Save electricity
Turn off any devices or appliances you are not using and preferably unplug them so they don’t consume standby power. Turn off unnecessary lights in rooms you aren’t using. Light cosy candles instead.
Keep in mind that underfloor heating, heating pumps, sewage pumps, and the like must not be switched off, as they can take several hours to get back up and operating after being switched off.
5) Cooking at low heat
You can use the heat from the oven as it heats up as well as the residual heat after cooking. Put the food in when the oven is still cold and turn the oven off 5–10 minutes ahead of time. Also make use of the residual heat from the conventional burners by turning them off a couple of minutes before the food is ready.
6) Other electrical appliances
Appliances that need to heat up (somewhat) use a lot of electricity. Thus, it’s a good idea to reduce your use of tumble dryers, irons, electric cookers, hair dryers, etc.
Take a break from everyday consumption and remember that right now it all costs a little extra. Above all, enjoy your holiday with those you care most about. Those are the people who make your holiday so special.
Have an excellent time in a holiday home.
