Fact Sheet 15

ENERGY EFFICIENCY AT HOME

Did you know…

• That the average energy use by Australians is more than twice that of the world average?
• That the energy used per person in Papua New Guinea is 20 times less than the energy used per person in Australia?
• That between 10 and 15 per cent of all energy used in Australia is used in our homes?
• That 40 per cent of the energy consumed in Queensland homes is used to heat water? (Check out the pie graph below.)
• That 90 per cent of the energy we use in our homes has a harmful effect on the environment?

Read on to learn more about what we can do in our homes to reduce the economic and ecological costs of our energy use.

(Note: Economic costs are to do with dollars. Ecological costs are to do with the health and wellbeing of the planet and the life it supports.)

People can become more energy-efficient in their own homes. Being energy-efficient means making better use of the energy we use to light our houses, run appliances and heat and cool our homes. In Queensland, for example, most of our electricity comes from coal-fired power stations. We also use gas in our homes for appliances such as stoves and hot water systems. If we became more energy-efficient, we would use less coal and gas. It is important to use less coal and gas for two reasons:

• Supplies of coal and gas are limited
• To reduce the percentage of carbon dioxide (CO₂) gas emissions that are harmful to the earth.

Coal and gas are forms of non-renewable energy. Energy used in homes can come from non-renewable sources or renewable sources. Non-renewable sources include fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas.

These forms of energy take millions of years to form. Renewable resources are those that are constantly being renewed or created and are unlikely to run out. Renewable energy sources include solar energy, hydropower and energy generated or produced from wind, waves and tides.

Most energy used in homes to heat and cool, run appliances and power lights comes from non-renewable supplies. At present we are using these resources faster than the earth can replace them. We need to:

• Use more renewable energy in our homes
• Cut down our use of non-renewable energy sources, that is, the electricity and gas we use in our homes.

Did you know that the energy required to keep a 100 watt globe burning for 10 hours produces 1.2 kilograms of CO₂?

Did you know that the average household in Queensland could save seven tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in gas emissions by using renewable energy instead of non-renewable energy?

Have you ever wondered how much it costs to run particular appliances using electricity?

It’s easy to work out. Just follow the formula: Cost = power rating (kW) x hours of use x unit price of electricity. Using this formula, we can work out how much it costs a consumer in dollars to run a computer every day of the year for two hours per day.

The cost of running a computer for two hours per day for one year is $43.80.

That’s the economic cost of running the computer for a year. What do you think the ecological cost would be? Emission of carbon dioxide (CO₂) during production is one measure of the ecological cost of running a computer for a year. Use information in the Fact Sheet to calculate the ecological cost of running the computer for a year.

Available as:

PDF – Fact Sheet 15

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Disclaimer. Copyright The State of Queensland (Department of Education) 2000