Appliances can account for up to 30 per cent of home energy use. As our reliance on appliances and technology increases and energy prices rise, choosing energy-efficient appliances becomes more important.
Running costs can add up to more than the purchase price over the life of the product so it’s worth taking a moment to calculate the running costs of appliances. If you’re thinking of buying this will help you determine the real cost of the product over its lifetime. For products you already have at home, you may wish to identify which ones are the biggest energy users and then consider how you save money by using them more efficiently.
Electric appliances with a star rating label
To estimate how much an electric appliance with a star rating will cost to run each year, you multiply the number of kilowatt hours (kWh) per year (the number on the energy rating label) by your electricity rate. Electricity rates vary depending on where you live. The rate you pay will be on your electricity bill. If you don’t have a bill handy, you can contact your energy supplier or visit their website to check.
The following examples use a rate of 23 cents per kilowatt hour as a rough estimate of electricity costs per unit. Electricity is usually measured in watts. A megawatt equals 1,000 kilowatts.
For example:
- a 117cm plasma TV with a 2-star label of 953 kWh per year x 23c can cost around $219 a year to run
- a 117cm LCD (LED) TV with a 7-star label of 310 kWh per year x 23c can cost around $71 a year to run
To estimate the lifetime running cost of an appliance or television, multiply the annual cost by 10 to 12 years (the average lifespan of most major appliances before they need to be replaced).
In this scenario, choosing the more energy-efficient television could save you nearly $1,500 over a 10-year period. This is likely to exceed any saving made on the original purchase price.
Electric appliances without a star rating label
The crucial steps to reducing electricity consumption are identifying how much energy you’re currently using and looking at your usage habits. Once you work out which appliances are having the greatest impact on your bills, it becomes easier to use appliances efficiently and also to buy energy-efficient appliances to reduce energy consumption.
You can estimate the running cost of new or existing appliances and technology by doing the following simple calculation.
Using a portable electric heater as an example:
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Find out how much you pay per unit of electricity
This information will be on your electricity bill. If you don’t have a bill handy, you can contact your energy supplier or visit their website to check.
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Find out how much input power the product uses in kilowatts (kW)
The ‘input’ power is usually marked on the packaging or in the manufacturer’s information in ‘watts’.
2,000 watts of electricity: 2,000 watts ÷ 1,000 = 2 kW
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Estimate hourly running cost
Multiply the input power in kW by the price of your electricity per kilowatt hour.
2kW x 23c per kWh = 46 cents per hour
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Estimate daily running cost
Multiply the cost per hour by the number of hours you use the appliance.
$0.46 x 5 hours = $2.30 per day
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Estimate yearly running cost
Multiply the daily cost by the typical number of days you use the appliance.
$2.30 per day x 100 days = $230 per year
