The terms you commonly see

You may have seen ‘Watt’ somewhere on your appliances or fuse boxes. As somebody who cares about energy consumption, you surely want to understand how the numbering actually works.

For example, a microwave may consume 1 kilowatt (1,000 watts) of energy, or an iron may use up to 2 kilowatts. If you have never learned electrical engineering before, it is alright to keep these numbers as just a reference, because there is another better way of making sense of it. This is where the energy efficiency label comes in.

Energy Proficiency Label

Introduced in 2006, energy efficiency labels are issued by the Energy Commission to manufacturers of electrical appliances who comply with the standards and requirements of energy performance tests. The label shows you the estimated energy consumption of an electrical equipment based on a star rating system. 5-star means the most efficient, while 1-star means the least efficient. With the star ratings, you can estimate how much electricity (kWH) the appliance consumes.

According to BSEEP, a huge difference in annual electricity bill can be seen when your home is equipped with 5-star appliances, compared to the 3-star. For example, a 3-star refrigerator consumes around 1242 kWh per year, while the 5-star consumes only 993 kWH. That makes a total of RM95.94 saved from your bill.

Other ways of saving electricity

Of course, the rating is simply a guideline. How do you make use of it will reflect the actual energy saving. A simple tips of what you can do after purchasing a new TV:

1. Check the energy efficiency label.
2. Calibrate it by adjusting the contrast and brightness to a moderate level. By default, new TVs are set to dynamic and high-contrast, which consume more power.
3. Plug your TV and components into a smart power strip to prevent waste of energy.
4. When buying other components, such as surround sound system, apply the same guideline of energy efficiency label.