Sharing a house is not uncommon these days and many find it very practical move for a whole lot of reasons.

However, it does not dispel the fact that for each housemate living in the same roof, basic utility usage such as electricity is also expected to rise.

But there are ways to save up on cash for energy use and be able to see your power bills drop. Here are some common and practical tips to conserve energy.

Shift to energy-efficient home appliances

Appliance manufacturing has gone through leaps and bounds with technology, which has ushered in the modern wave of home appliances that are smart and energy-efficient.

While you may have saved up some previous dollars with that used fridge, however, if it is an old model and does not carry an energy star rating it literally eats up a lot of power.

So, when looking for home appliances, look for those with an energy star rating of no less than three so you can save up a lot on your energy consumption.

Cook together

Planning and making meals together makes it less tedious and can also save up on energy consumption. Preparing a communal meal together with your housemate makes the work less tasking and reduces the stress of planning your meals throughout the day.

You could also save up on your grocery expenses.

Use your dishwasher

You’d be surprised to know that you actually save more water and energy by using your dishwasher. When sharing a house, you could also encourage your housemates that have your dishes washed at the same time to minimise the number of times you use the dishwasher in a day.

Just be sure to get a dishwasher with an energy star rating of no less than 3 to optimise energy savings.

Coldwater for laundry

Using tap water for washing clothes is good enough to keep your clothes clean and fresh. Also, you may as well make sure that you wash on full load instead of just half. You get to save money but not using energy to heat the water for washing.

Use detergent formulated for cold water use and produces the same results as hot water machine washing.

Use our dryer sparingly

Avoid the temptation of using your dryer each and every time you do your laundry. Take advantage of the sun by hanging your clothes to dry. You may spend a bit more time hanging your clothes, but it does guarantee you significant savings on your energy bills.

Use your home heater only when necessary

House heating can burn up a lot of energy, so why not add an extra blanket layer or two to keep you warm through the night.

You can also save energy by using an electric blanket instead of getting the entire house warmed up, which can be 16 times much cheaper compared to a house heating system.

During the daytime, you may want to also let sunshine in by opening up your curtains and allow the sunshine to radiate throughout the house and provide natural heat.

Using these simple yet practical tips, you may be surprised to see your energy bills going down. This means less pressure and stress on you and your housemates.