With the electricity prices in Norway increasing quite a lot in recent years, you are bound to have started wondering what it is that affects those. You’ve found out that the price is affected by various different factors, such as supply and demand, the weather and some other elements you cannot directly affect. Click this to get a better idea about what affects those.
Apart from that, you have most probably also started wondering whether there are certain things you can do to affect the actual prices. That made you curious about one thing in particular. Which appliances use the most power? Because, if you find that out, you may be able to create a saving plan and thus succeed in lowering those bills at least to a certain extent.
Before we cover the topic of the appliances and their effects on prices, let me make one thing clear as well. The electricity supplier you are cooperating with also affects the costs significantly, meaning that you should check and review your contract if you’re quite unhappy with the bills. You could benefit from changing suppliers and thus getting a more favorable contract.
In any case, no matter which contract you get, there is no doubt that your consumption habits affect the costs as well. So, it is no wonder you’re thinking about changing those at least a bit. If you want to change them, though, you’ll need to understand which appliances use the most electricity, which is the topic we will cover below.
Electrical Consumption Overview
Curious about the general levels of consumption in a typical Norwegian household? Understanding that, which you can also do if you go to bestestrøm.no/hvor-mye-strøm-bruker/ or similar relevant sources of information, will help you get a better idea about your own consumption and about whether those bills are actually high, or if they count as reasonable. So, let me quickly give you an overview.
The type of home affects the consumption as well. So, a detached house will use around 25,000 kWh per year, while a terraced one will use 17,000 kWh annually. Living in a flat should lower that number, with smaller apartments using around 11,000 kWh, which is more than twice lower than the amount spent in a detached house. Outside temperatures will affect this as well, but so will the appliances you’re using, so let us now talk a bit more about those.
Which Appliances Use the Most Power?
If you think about it logically, you will realize that those households relying heavily on electrical appliances, for heating and everything else, are bound to get higher bills. Yet, there are differences among those appliances as well, meaning that some of them use more power and some of them use less. So, you’re wondering hvor mye strøm bruker – how much different appliances use and you’re ready to find out? As I’ve mentioned above already, understanding the consumption of different devices can help you try and save some money in the long run, by developing better habits and finding better solutions that could use less power than what you may be used to.
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Heating and Cooling Appliances
Unsurprisingly, heating and cooling appliances are at the top of the list, because they account for between 50% and 60% of overall electricity consumption in a household. If you’re using only electric heaters, you’ll use the most power as well, meaning that the bills will be quite high. On the other hand, if you have a wood burning stove, for example, or solar panels, you can significantly lower your consumption and thus enjoy lower bills as well.
How much you will spend on heating and cooling will, of course, also depend on the size of your property. The larger your home, the more time, and possibly the more appliances, you’ll use to heat it up during the winter or to cool it down during the summer. It is heating, however, that is usually more necessary in all regions of Norway.
In any case, dividing your home into temperature zones and not heating every room if there’s no need for it can lower your bills significantly. Keep the living room and the bathroom at around 20°C to 22°C, as that’s the optimal temperature that will be comfortable, and you won’t have to keep the heating devices running for a long time to achieve it. Your bedrooms could do with lower temperatures, and usually, between 15°C and 18°C should be enough.
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Water Heater
Next comes the water heater, another appliance that can count as a big electricity consumer. Although, compared to the electrical heating solutions, these don’t really spend a lot. In any case, they still account for around 15% to 20% of overall energy consumption, meaning that there is potential for saving as well. Not letting the water heater have the temperature higher than 70°C could positively affect your bill.
Furthermore, reducing the time you spend in the shower could also affect the overall amount on the bill. And, naturally, washing your dishes by hand leads to a lot of hot water being consumed, which, in turn, results in the water heater working more. This will all show on your bill. While the electricity prices in Norway seem to have stabilized at a higher level, you can still do something to lower those bills, and using a dishwasher could be one of those things, even though it may sound a bit counterintuitive at first.
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Other Electrical Appliances
Other electrical appliances, such as your refrigerator, your washing machine and your dryer, and any other devices you may be using, will account for around 15% of overall consumption. Some of those spend less, while some spend more. The dryer is known as a big consumer, so using it less could also lower your bills.
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Lighting
Finally, there is the lighting – 10% of the overall consumption. What you can do to save here is not leave the lights on in rooms you aren’t using. The truth is, though, that this won’t have a big impact on the bill, but even a small impact can sometimes be worth it, especially when you couple this practice with those other saving tips and ideas you have been given above.