The metro has issued a number of tips to help communities reduce higher electricity bills and reduce power outages as a result of overloading this winter.<\/p>\n
Speaking on behalf of the metro, spokesman Zweli Dlamini said a lot of residents find themselves with high electricity bills during winter, but keeping warm \u201cdoes not have to be costly if you are smart about space heating this winter\u201d.<\/p>
The municipality advised ratepayers to, among other things, delay switching on a space heater in order to prevent their electricity bills from spiking by doing the following:<\/p>\n
According to Eskom, in winter approximately 40 per cent of heat is lost through the roof if your home is not insulated. Eskom explained that insulation:<\/p>
Homeowners have also been encouraged to switch off their geysers during evening peaks, 5pm to 9pm, in order to alleviate serious supply constraints.<\/p>\n
To assist in managing their demand homeowners should use heating appliances as a last resort by, for example, reducing body heat-loss by covering themselves with sufficient layers of clothing or blankets, or by using hot water bottles or microwave beanbags to warm themselves up.<\/p>\n
Should the temperature dip to very low levels, and using heaters becomes unavoidable, homeowners should buy heaters with a built-in thermostat, and only heat the rooms that they are going to spend time in, the metro advised.<\/p>\n
When going to sleep, electric blankets are preferable to leaving heaters on all night.<\/p>\n
Electric blankets are surprisingly energy efficient and can be made even more energy efficient by turning them to their highest setting for a few minutes, then turning them off for the night, just before getting into bed.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also important to keep the warm air inside one\u2019s home from escaping.<\/p>\n
When it\u2019s cold, heat is transferred outside.<\/p>\n
When using an electric heater close windows and curtains, and cover the openings underneath doors.<\/p>\n
By installing ceiling insulation heat loss will be reduced significantly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a metro we are quite confident that should our ratepayers adopt these steps, they will see a huge drop on their municipal accounts while at the same time see a massive reduction in power outages, which are mainly caused by over-loading,\u201d Dlamini explained.<\/p>\n
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