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SP Services say total amount payable is $0.00! (AK uses his air con more but keeps the bill in check.)

Monday, October 19, 2015


(Update 4 Jan 17): 
AK has denied SP Services some revenue! Happiness is a utility bill that looks like this.



All thanks to the really cool weather recently (and not the miserable reduction in electricity tariff).
-------------
Since having my own place once more, I have had discussions with friends on more domestic topics like the household utility bill. In all these discussions, I discovered that my utility bill is relatively low.





My consumption is below the national average for my house type, apparently.

What about my bill in dollar terms?






It has remained more or less the same compared to my utility bill a few years ago when I had my old place and stayed there for 4 years or so, $100 a month, give or take a few dollars. I think this is quite remarkable.

I absolutely cannot live without the air con being on at home. If I am home, the air con and air purifiers are on. Since I am home for many more hours now each day compared to a few years ago, the air con is on for many more hours per day too.

I also watch more TV now as I have more free time. I like watching the Travel Channel, HGTV, Discovery Channel, National Geographic and the History Channel. 

I have a 40" Full HD LED TV now compared to the 26" LCD TV I had in my old place before I replaced it with a 32" LED a year before I sold the place. I think my many TV watching hours now should consume more electricity.

How is it that my utility bill has not gone up much?

I think it is fair to say that the air con probably consumes more electricity than other electrical appliances at home. So, the first thing to do is to make sure to insist on having the energy saving Invertor technology. 



4 ticks, nothing less.

Then, I will usually set the air con temperature to 24 degrees centigrade. On a very warm day, maybe, 23 degrees centigrade.  


The lower the temperature we set, the higher the energy consumption. So, 23 degrees centigrade is usually the lowest I would go.

I have a friend who sets the temperature to 18 degrees centigrade at home as the norm. That is freezing and sends the energy bill through the roof!

Well, since moving to my new place, I got acquainted with my new Invertor air con which has a neat dehumidifier function. This function removes moisture from the air.

Often, we feel warm because of the high humidity level in our climate. The human body is not able to cool itself as well in a humid environment. If we are able to lower the humidity level in a room, our body will feel cooler naturally.

If we set the air con to dehumidifier mode, it lowers the humidity level in the room to about 60%. This is much lower than the usual humidity level in Singapore.

What does the symbol look like? 





A couple of  water drops. Unfortunately, you won't find this mode in older air cons.

If you have Invertor air cons at home and if they are quite new, they should have the dehumidifier mode. If you cannot live without the air con on at home, try this mode. It should lower energy consumption and you should see some savings.

When I go to bed, I would switch the air con back to the regular mode, the one with the snow flake symbol. 





This lowers the humidity level as well as the temperature in the room. 24 degrees centigrade, of course.

It keeps the room cool enough and I don't even need to use a blanket. Just need to wear socks to bed. 


I hope I have not put anyone to sleep with this blog post. Zzzzzz.
Related posts:
1. Photos of AK's home.
2. What can we do to survive the haze?

21 comments:

fitree said...

I don't event have any air conditioning system and my electricity consumption is almost similar to yours! Gosh. I think I need to relook at my plasma TV and fridge. I'm really missing out on some finer things in life here.

That said, the national average for your "house type" is quite high eh? ;)

Ray said...

But AK, you cannot compare apple to orange.
The back of the bill only shows your bill compared to the national average of that "house type".
Since you mentioned you have "your own place", I'm assuming you are staying there alone.
So it's 1 pax vs let's say 4 pax for the normal household living in your "house type".
4 pax will definitely use more electricity and water and gas compared to 1 pax.

AK71 said...

Hi fitree,

I guess we have to check on how energy efficient the electrical stuff at home are.

Also, what Ray says is correct. It would depend on how many people are staying with you. ;p

AK71 said...

Hi Ray,

I do have a flat mate. Sometimes, two.

I think it is safe to say that the consumption shown is for 2 or 2.5 people. ;p

Ray said...

wah.... flat mate ;)
wink wink...

AK71 said...

Hi Ray,

Ahem. It is a bit like back in NS staying in a bunk or in Uni staying in a hostel. ;)

Cory said...

Nice tip. I will try. Btw "Flat Mate" comes 24 not low enough lah ;)

KW said...

Hi AK,

There is a company that launched a contest and award employee who can keep their electrical usage below national average for 6 months. They even give them a hero name:
"Below Average" Superhero!
When the winners were announced and prize given by the MD, being "Below Average" become a role model!
Go Green and save money at the same time, why not?

fitree said...

@AK71 @Ray wah that means AK is not being energy efficient if you're staying alone! Bad AK!

owq said...

Haha I usually set my thermostat to 28C. Maybe it's broken...

apex property investment said...

Well played bro, well played...

Unknown said...

Hi AK,

Just curious, how much is your average monthly expenses?

A rough breakdown of the main expenses (e.g. food, parent's allowances, car expenses) will be appreciated too!

AK71 said...

Hi Cory,

I have house rules. When my friends bunk over, they know to follow.

AK71 said...

Hi KW,

I am definitely below average. I have always said I am an underachiever who is not interested in doing more. I am lazy. ;p

AK71 said...

Hi fitree,

Actually, one reason for higher energy consumption could be the use of an induction stove. My place does not have a gas stove. I might change that in future if I begin to cook a lot more. -.-"

AK71 said...

Hi owq,

28 degC? You don't need to on the air con at night then. That is probably the air temperature at night in Singapore. In fact, it could be cooler towards the end of the year. :)

AK71 said...

Hi Jack,

Alamak, would anyone be interested in information like this? I don't think it is going to be useful information. -.-"
I did give a glimpse through a blog post before:
Upgrade our income but not expenses.
I will consider blogging about my average monthly expenses in greater detail. :)

pf said...

I'm also concerned abt my bills these days. :)

I believe your place is new and hv newer appliances compared to last time. New appliances cam save more electricity.

AK71 said...

Hi pf,

I think my Invertor air con at my old place had 3 ticks. Not too bad. :)

I agree that getting newer and energy efficient home appliances will go some way to save on electricity consumption. Even fridges have Invertor technology now, I found out.

Blue Willow said...

Thks for the tip. I have a 4+ year old non-inverter aircon (mitsubushi starmex) and it has a dehumidifier function too; just checked. I had absolutely no idea till you mentioned it.

BW

AK71 said...

Hi BW,

4+ years is probably considered young for an air con system. A friend has Mitsubishi Starmex installed too. It has 4 ticks.

Hope the dehumidifier function saves you some money. ;)


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