A prize to light up my life...

A couple of months ago, the company I work for had this quiz relating to Energy Saving, and I was one of the 'lucky' winners.

Guess what was my prize?






An energy-saving light bulb!



I thought it was such as strange prize, but I gave it to my bf because he wanted it.

Anyway, here's to share some energy saving tips provided by the company.

10 things that escape people's radar in saving energy:

1. Refrigerators should not be placed near other heat-emitting appliances such as ovens and cookers, or in direct sunlight. There also has to be adequate space above, behind, and around the sides of the refrigerator for better circulation of air for the appliance to work efficiently.
2. Air conditioners should also be installed away from direct sun rays. Placing air conditioners above windows would be a good option. Maintenance of the air filter and exterior coil fins are important for air conditioners to work efficiently with less energy.
3. Electrical appliances on standby mode (i.e. television sets, stereo systems, and computers) consume a lot of energy too, with the average household using more than 100KW of energy alone on appliances switched to standby. Appliances should be switched off at the main plug when not in use.
4. An energy-saving light bulb or compact fluorescent lamp may cost more than a conventional light bulb or fluorescent light, but it lasts 5 times longer than a conventional light bulb (6000 hrs : 5000 hrs), has 4 times the output of normal lights, and uses as low as 20% (depending on variety) of the energy of conventional bulbs.
5. Boiling water with a gas stove is more energy-efficient and cheaper than using electric kettles.
6. Food in a microwave oven will still continue to cook or heat up even after the operation of it is shut by the heating-timer. Therefore, you can adjust your heating time to stop for a couple of minutes before you take out your food.
7. Partial loads in a washing machine use almost as much energy as full loads. Gather full loads of laundry before using the washing machine.
8. Instant water heaters that heat water as it is used uses much less energy than storage-type heaters that attempt to keep water hot all the time even when it is not in use.
9. Fans only serve to circulate air in the room. For maximum cooling purposes, fans should be operated with the possibility of air exchange to draw cooler air from the outside into the house near a window or a doorway.
10. Screen savers are only used to protect the monitor of computers, and do not do so much in saving energy. Computers should be set to sleep mode when not in use to reduce energy consumption of up to a fifth compared to normal usage or screen-saving mode.