Electricity Savings Myths: 2021 Edition

If you’re a longtime reader of this blog, you’ve certainly seen one of our past posts on electricity savings myths.

Not every tip you hear actually results in energy savings though!

Just like every industry, you have myths, misperceptions, and misunderstandings.

So, in 2021, what myths still exist?

What advice that, when you hear it, should you go running in exactly the opposite direction from?

Here’s the list as we see it:

1. Fans Cool the Room

There is no such thing as a fan that cools a room. Fans do not do that. Any fan, whether on your ceiling or floor, simply moves air around.

When that air hits you on a warm day, however, you feel cooler. But the air temperature remains the same.

So, if you leave fans on to cool some part of your home, you only waste energy. Turn them on if you want when you’re around.

But don’t think that you’re cooling the air when you leave fans on while you’re not around.

2. Computers Use More Power When You Turn Them On

This one’s actually partially true. Computers do use more power the moment you turn them on.

But, that power surge lasts only for a fraction of a second and is literally so small you can barely measure it.

Turning your computer on costs you a fraction of a penny so small that you don’t even get charged for it.

Turn your computer on whenever you feel like it without any worry. Just make sure you turn it off so it doesn’t unnecessarily waste energy in sleep mode.

3. Hand Washing Dishes Uses Less Water than a Dishwasher

This is actually kind of a gray area. If you hand-wash dishes in the most energy-efficient way possible, meaning you run as little water as you can, you might actually use less water than a dishwasher.

And that could be the case if you have less than a full dishwasher load to wash.

However, on average, the typical dishwasher uses less water when you wash a full load.

4. Windows Lose the Most Heat

Nope. Not by a long shot. Windows actually lose just a small portion of your home’s heat.

Your walls actually lose most of the heat in your home because they have much larger surface area.

So if you want to reduce heat loss in your home, you’re really wisest to invest in good insulation.

5. Electric Heaters Make More Sense If You Need to Heat Just a Single Room

Not true.

Electric heaters are so grossly inefficient that it makes more sense to heat your whole home with your heating system than it does to heat just a single room with an electric heater.

If you want to reduce your heating use, install a smart thermostat, put on warmer clothes, and cut the thermostat’s temperature by a degree or two.

So, did you learn anything new?

It’s interesting that, when you look at energy savings, you actually don’t have to sacrifice your personal comfort that much, if at all.

Focus on what you learned, implement it, and watch the savings roll in!