Do energy efficiency light bulbs take ages to warm up? Will your fridge use less energy if you keep in a cold place? We're all keen to try and save energy in the home, but it can be hard to know which energy saving tips are fact, and which are fiction. uSwitch busts five of the most common energy-saving myths.
1. Energy-saving light bulbs take ages to warm up and have a dull light
This myth was partially true in the early days of energy-saving light bulbs, when they could take a while to 'warm up' and gave off noticeably different light to incandescent bulbs.
However, energy efficiency bulbs have developed a lot since they were first invented. Now, most energy efficiency bulbs reach at full beam in under a second, and have a light just as bright as a regular bulb. You can even pick which colour would best suit the kind of light you need - for instance, a warm light for your bedroom or a bright white for the basement.
In fact, research by the Energy Saving Trust found that over half of people could not tell the difference between traditional and energy-saving bulbs and two out of three even preferred energy-saving bulbs.
2. Leaving my fridge outside or in a cold room means it will use less energy
Another energy efficiency myth is that moving your fridge will mean it uses less energy. In fact the opposite is true - leaving your fridge outside is likely to make it less energy-efficient and can damage your fridge.
Instead, to keep your fridge in top condition and energy-efficient, make sure your freezer is regularly defrosted, that the temperature is no colder than 3°C, and make sure the rubber seals around the doors are intact.
3. Energy-saving light bulbs are dangerous because they contain mercury
The amount of mercury found in a CFL bulb is extremely small - just 5milligrams (a thermometer contains 3 grams). Even if your bulb did break, the mercury it contains is unlikely to cause you any harm. Nevertheless, it is important to dispose of your CFL bulb in the recommended way.
4. Turning things off and on again uses more energy than leaving them on.
Whether it's a light bulb or a computer, leaving something switched on will always use more energy than turning it off and back on again. The 'power surge' of electricity that turns your appliance on is relatively small and uses significantly less energy than leaving it on all the time. Even if your computer goes has an automatic standby, it will still be consuming power until it is turned off. Leaving appliances on standby makes up around eight per cent of the average energy bill or around £37 a year.*
Make sure you unplug your devices when they are not in use, or try an extension socket that can turn off multiple appliances by remote control.
5. Having a shower uses less water than a bath.
This may or may not be true depending on how long you spend in the shower, and what kind of shower you have . According the Environmental Agency, showers use about nine litres of water per minute, so a five minute shower will use about a third of the water of a bath. However, if you have a power shower, it will use a lot more water. A power shower can use more water than a bath in less than 5 minutes. Interested in saving water? An easy way to tell if you are using more water in your shower or bath is to put the plug in when you're having a shower. If the water at the end of your shower is less than your normal bath, than stick to a shower!
* Based on a medium user customer consuming 3,300 kWh of electricity, on a capped or fixed price plan paying by direct debit with bill sizes averaged across all regions and the big six suppliers.